A dress for Friday

And probably every other day, too.  Oh, Anthropologie, why do you taunt me?  You make the perfect little dress and then only in one color.

Every fall, I mull the fashion offerings.  It's getting harder!  I've done the 80s thing already, back in the actual 80s, so much of this year's stuff is out.  I feel stupid in leggings, and I've hit an age where, while I've still got a pretty good figure, maybe I just don't feel like showing it all the time.  (Thanks, Spanx!)  And, honestly, owning a yarn shop isn't great for feeling young and stylish.  I'm just saying there's high frump potential, that's all.

Enter this dress.  Short, but not too, and comfy with soft corduroy, and just right for showing off my cute Daisy Duke boots* and any of a gazillion scarves at my disposal.  In other words, really perfect.  I'll take one in every color.  So, exactly ONE.

*My Frye Daisy Dukes, brown and cream.  Kind of like the ones in the link except for the color.  The only thing I can wear named after Daisy!

EDITED:  HEY!  They've added two more colors.  Yes, please.

Howdy from Dallas

Blogging today from Dallas.  I'm going to try to blog about travel on Tuesdays, so this works.

Texas is just so darn big.  Lyle Lovett has a terrific song, "That's Right," in which he tells someone not from Texas that it's okay, you can be a Texan, because "Texas wants you anyway."  And it's true.  Everyone I talked to just loves Texas, and they wanted me to love it, too.

I spent the larger part of yesterday shopping.  I visited the Galleria, where I found exactly the same stores that we have in Atlanta.  *yawn*  The Galleria is immense, and it does have an ice skating rink.  I guess I wasn't in the right mood, because I left after about an hour of strolling around and never even got motivated to try on a pair of shoes or some jeans.

I had better luck when I headed down to McKinney Street, in what I think is the "Uptown" neighborhood. One great store was all it took:  Cowboy Cool.  I only bought a belt but also had a great conversation with the owner and staff.  And that is really the point of this post.

Dallas is booming.  It's obvious by the low vacancy rate you see when driving around a shopping district, by the few houses you'll see for sale, and the vibrant restaurant scene.  Not like Atlanta at all.  So when the friendly Cowboy Cool staff asked me where I was from, we launched into a comparison of Dallas and Atlanta.  Georgia's unemployment and foreclosure rates are quite high compared to the national average; Texas' rates are much lower.  The owner said that things were a little tighter this year than last, but really they were doing just fine.  Where last year a customer might have bought TWO pairs of custom-made boots, this year they'd buy just one pair, but they were still buying.

A friend of the owner's had relocated in the last year or so to Atlanta, from a position at the Mansion on Turtle Creek to a similar position at a new property in Atlanta.  The friend is now trying "everything" to get back to Dallas.  Seems the economy in Atlanta isn't supporting the new property.  More than that, though, the friend's experience of Atlanta was that so much of life revolved around race.  The city "too busy to hate" apparently is not too busy to keep careful track of what is fair and what isn't.  Much of this person's professional experience in Atlanta was taken up with placating employees, showing fairness and  dealing with hurt feelings and worse.

Now, this is one person's experience, related to me third-hand.  But this is how a reputation grows.  Why would any company want to locate to a city where they automatically have to prove their good intentions, where a large part of the population is looking for resolutions to grievances, real OR perceived?  Now, I also don't know the state of relations here in Dallas.  But these people were plainly shocked that it "really is like that" in Atlanta, and it was obvious that the level of racial tension--yes, tension, much more than mere awareness--was remarkable to a Dallas transplant.

I wanted to post about this because it was striking--these new acquaintances were looking for verification that the atmosphere in Atlanta "really is like that."  And I had to agree that it is, because even the recent mayoral election bears that out.  While we don't see it out in the suburbs as much, Atlanta spends so much time worrying about black versus white.  It is sad to see a city that helped give birth to the civil rights movement be unable to move beyond it.  I wonder if Atlanta will ever move on.

Well, that was kind of a downer.  So now I'm off to check out Highland Park, GWB's neighborhood, and then I think it'll be time to head home.  One last day to pretend to be a Texan: big hair and big wallet.  At least the hair.

Summer Vacation in November

We didn't have a summer vacay this year, at least not one that counted. We had to attend a family wedding in July. It was in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the week, required putting all six of us on an airplane, and significant time away from work and home. But, trust me, it was no vacation.

We were lucky and blessed to send our kids to camp during June, and some moron decreed that school begins in early August here in Georgia, so we never got a summer week away. This isn't whining, just a way of explaining that our trip isn't special, just extremely postponed. The fun thing is, now we get to plan our vacation!

More background: my husband does his business in China, and we've been planning all year for the six of us to head over there. We both believe it's terribly important for the kids to see what their daddy does and we thought, "Why not? We have great, easy-going kids, so let's just try it."

Now, have you ever tried to do something but had a roadblock in front of you at every turn? That was this trip. Nothing seemed to go right. We had all but decided to cancel it, and one day my DH emailed me an announcement from a trade show in Lyon, France. In November. Leading up to Thanksgiving. This one fell into our laps--we immediately gave up our China plans and turned to France!

Some history: I have for some inexplicable reason been obsessed with all things French for as long as I can remember. I took three years in high school, saving most of my money from my part-time jobs to pay for a trip to France my senior year. My distinct recollection of my first visit to Paris was of "coming home" because I had studied the city and the culture so much. I minored in French in college, taking classes all four years and always getting an "A." My Georgia Tech engineer's GPA owes a lot to my humanities in French, and M. Brown!! I was lucky enough to study under a professor who got me an internship in France between my junior and senior years of high school (Thanks, Dr. Antolovich!!), three months when I got to actually pretend I was "francoise." My sweet husband proposed to me on the Eiffel Tower--yes, ladies, there really ARE men who plan such things! Hold out for one.

Unfortunately, after the proposal, life got in the way. We've had four kids, two houses, two dogs, a cat, a pool, a pony and countless cars since then. If someone had told me fifteen years ago that I'd just now be going back to Paris, I would have been convinced they were lying!!

Anyway, we've bought our plane tickets and are just starting our itinerary. Lyon, naturally, to meet my sweet DH and take in the sights in France's "second city." Then, south to Nimes or possibly Montpellier, then a leisurely drive back north to Paris to spend a few days. My biggest concern right now is where to get turkey in Paris on Thursday! I'll post more as we plan our vacation. Meanwhile, if you've been recently, espeically with the kids, please let me know what you loved! My boys are obsessed with all things Roman, but what else can we do? Thanks!

Why I went

My DH and I spent the weekend in DC, at the Restoring Honor Rally. It was--words fail right now. I'm glad I was there, and it gave me plenty to think about. What I want to do in this post is explore the reasons I felt compelled to be there.

I like Glenn Beck. I think he is a smart guy who has been through a lot in his life, much of it by his own hand. He has found a faith that I don't share--I mean, I'm not Mormon. I am a Christian, so I think I understand the depths of his love of God. And we both look to the Bible for our guidance and understanding. (Okay, I could digress a lot here but I'm going to focus on the rally.) I also think Glenn is over the top quite frequently, and I think he knows it too. He believes that a huge portion of the population is blind or sleeping, and this is his way of grabbing us by the lapels and shaking us.

I think he's wrong some of the time. I think he goes too far on plenty of occasions. And I'm pretty sure he'd agree with me on all of this. But most emphatically I don't look to Glenn for a messiah figure, or even a Moses figure. I don't look to him to form my worldview, and I don't do things just because "Glenn says."

So, when this guy I listen to on the radio says "Come to D.C." I didn't jump. But I thought about it and prayed about it for a while. Last Sunday, six days before the rally, we bought our plane tickets and got our hotel reservation. Here's why:

• I was curious. Glenn had played this one close to the vest, not really saying what this would be. I wanted to see it.
• I wanted to be a part of a message of concern and encouragement. The country feels unhealthy right now. I don't mean Washington. I'm talking about the culture. Sometimes it feels like my friends and I are the weird ones, the ones who believe in traditional marriage, who think that everything that feels good isn't necessarily good for us. The ones who want to take care of our neighbors because that's what people do. This small group...we're not the only ones, are we?
• I wanted to be heard. This is the same reason we went to the national Tea Party on 9/12 of last year. The actions our government is taking, like universal health care and the refusal to prosecute the Black Panther voter intimidation case, feel foreign, deeply un-American, to me. So that was a political motivation for me.
• I feel afraid of the path our country is on. I was looking for comfort and reassurance. I got that by the ton at the Tea Party last year, and I wanted to go back to the well for more. Political? Kind of. More cultural--like, I am not the only one who thinks we're driving off a cliff.
• I didn't want to miss out. I thought--what if something really wonderful comes out of this? I want to say "I was there when..." and not "Wow, I wish I'd been there."

So we went. We met people from all over the country who had gathered. It was what I expected and nothing I expected. My DH and I left feeling challenged, with plenty of ideas to mull for a while.

Two more things to say: first, it was emphatically NOT political. Plenty of lefties will say that's not true, but I listened with ears ready to catch anything. I heard something approaching politics twice: first, a reference by Sarah Palin to a phrase that is used by the Obama administration. Frankly right now I can't remember it, but I remember thinking "Oh, there it is" when she said it. Second, there was only one reference to Islam, in mentioning "Churches and temples, synagogues and mosques" toward the end. There were no imams in sight and no reference to needing to respect Islam. I have my thoughts on that subject so I actually had no problem with this lack of "inclusiveness."

Second, it felt healthy to hear public readings of the Bible and "American Scripture," the Declaration of Independence and the writings of the Founding Fathers and other Patriots. I remember hearing the Gettysburg Address last year, on 9/11, and crying buckets because it spoke to our battle now. Glenn read it out loud at the Rally, and it was moving there, too. Try to find a recording of it and listen with ears to what it says NOW. I believe Lincoln was touched by God when he wrote that. The Bible readings were about restoring, rebuilding, and were mostly Old Testament. They were an encouragement.

I hope I've shared a little of our motivation for attending the rally. Was I satisfied with it? Well, I've certainly got a lot to think about.

Busy-ness

So I'm trying to decide how busy is too busy. We've had exactly four piano practices in two weeks (among four kids...do the math), and I don't know how to pack it in. Matching socks are nonexistent in my house, and the last three days at least four pieces of clothing from the kids have come directly from the dryer. My husband and I are trying to carve out time to just talk to each other without my falling asleep right there. That's not a commentary on him--I'm just exhausted. We get up at 5:45 to get moving, have a cup of coffee before the kids are up and trying to find their clothes.

We have a pony 20 minutes away who needs to be ridden at least four times a week. We have three lunches that must be made. Two loads of laundry a day to keep up. (Where do those clothes come from?) One business that needs to be run well. You can't keep great employees running a shop half-way! That doesn't count my husband's business which is actually how we eat, sleep, swim, vacation, school, everything our children and our life. So my shop is only for me. And possibly my shoes...the shoe money.

I feel like I'm not running my true calling, my home, to its best. But I stayed home for eight years with no outside occupation. And when I did that, I went NUTS. Literally. I have the doctor bills to prove it.

So now I'm wondering...what price sanity? What about the balance between my sanity and my home's? Maybe this is just the same boring old balance blah blah blah. But it is weighing on me. The shop may be coming out of the slump of summer. But will it be enough?

The value of horses

I am so lucky, because one of my children was born horse-crazy. Neither my husband nor I grew up around horses. We just had the little bit of contact with them that second-generation-removed-from-the-farm, suburban kids have: occasional rides on bareback with the docile old farm pony, summer camp rides for an hour or so. Certainly nothing about taking care of a horse. The bridle and bit seemed to be incredibly mysterious and complicated. No more.

DD3 was born with riding boots on, I think. From about the age of three she was obsessed, seeking all things equine out in books and at farms, wanting to ride, ride, ride. For a couple of years all the farms I could find just said, "No, too young, she needs to be seven, maybe eight." Until one day, a friend of mine, a rider, suggested I call her barn. And so DD3's love affair began in earnest at age six.

It so happens that as she was starting to ride, we had her learning disabilities diagnosed: an extreme deficit in short-term memory, particularly visual memory. (Can you say "sight word?") My poor sweet girl's confidence had been shaken mightily at school and she was unwilling to guess with anything. Our wise tutor knew she needed more than drills for memory and encouraged us to pursue the riding to build DD3's confidence.

Oh, how it worked! She embraced controlling this large animal using reins, legs and voice, and she welcomed the challenge of figuring out the tack. It makes me smile thinking of my sweet little thing holding a hoof in her hand and scraping out the ick, or pushing the horse's hindquarters around because he wasn't standing properly. And tack? It was no mystery at all.

My sweet girl became supremely competent at caring for a horse as well as riding it, jumping in the ring and taking the horse on trail rides. She learned how to be strong but gentle, with a firm hand to guide a feisty pony. And of course she continues to learn--she turns nine next week and shows no signs of tiring of her big friends!

Her little sister also rides. DD4 is a lovely, flightly girl who loves absolutely everyone and finds a way to put herself into the middle of anything that's going on. And she's blond, God love her. But for her, riding requires her to be more serious than at any other time. If she doesn't pay close attention she'll miss her jumps or not ride the correct way. For DD4 this level of concentration and quiet attention are a gift.

After seeing his two younger sisters ride, my oldest son decided to give it a go. This is such an unusual activity for a boy, even though many men are champion riders. DS1 is now a middle-schooler, and he has a tendency to be harsh. He is constantly reminded to temper his anger as he deals with an animal that may or may not be cooperating! There is NOTHING I can do for him (or to him!) that would give him this experience. But through this wordless communication he is learning how to be firm and determined but still kind and gentle. Great lessons for a young man.

There's also just so much stuff that goes along with horses: brushes, combs, sprays, picks, blankets, leather of all sorts. It all has to be cared for, especially because it doesn't come cheap! It is so wonderful to have them learn to take care of everything at the barn, part of learning the good with the bad.

We just went to a horse show this morning with our new pony Bailey. He did okay, but the kids did great managing this green little horse. So I've had horses on the brain. Just wanted to share a tiny bit of our experience. Yes, they are frightfully expensive but there is a lot to it, and I am so glad we've been able to give out kids this chance to learn from them. I can't encourage it enough.

Arrogant or Incompetent?

Which is the preferred trait in a leader? Neither is great, but is one less bad? DH and I discussed this last night as we watched O'Reilly. Chris Wallace was the guest, and after much pulling and prodding O'Reilly finally got this newsman to offer his opinion. (That's not his job, but that's another issue.) Wallace believed that Obama's problem, his tone-deafness, is due to arrogance. O'Reilly reacted strongly against that word, pushing Wallace to back down from that word and chalk the disconnectedness in the White House to incompetence. Wallace was firm, and stuck by his analysis of arrogance.

BTW, the purpose here wasn't to critique O'Reilly. That would take SEVERAL more posts.

So DH and I started talking about it...would we prefer a leader who is arrogant or incompetent? Well, of course the right answer is "neither," but I think we are stuck with at least one of these traits for two more years. Arrogant--there was no one with a bigger ego than Bill Clinton, but I think he wasn't terrible. I completely disagreed with his policies, but he was sensitive to the electorate, infuriating to his opponents, and endlessly creative. A leader who is arrogant will stick to his own point of view rather than reach out for others. He'll claim credit for anything good that happens, and find ways to pin blame for the bad on those who are outside his circle. He'll try to lead by force of his character. Humility? Unheard of, in the leader or those around him. Be humble around this guy and get run over. Hmmm...the shoe seems to fit.

An incompetent leader, on the other hand, will lead us down the wrong road. "President" is a big job, the biggest big-picture job in the world. Not only do you need a big picture outlook, you must surround yourself with people who can do the same within their own spheres. Look at who runs this administration: more Ph.D.s and non-profit/government workers than any previous administration, and fewer private, business-oriented, big picture citizens than ever before.

My DH, a Ph.D. himself, has said more than once that as you proceed through higher education, you know more and more about less and less. Eventually you know an infinite amount about the asshole of an ant. A person can be brilliant but incompetent, failing to see the big picture. An incompetent leader might surround himself with other experts, all various asshole experts, but not realize he also needs to understand the general manure pile. (Man, that metaphor is stretched way too thin. Sorry. I'll quit.)

They've all convinced themselves that they are experts, but things keep happening "unexpectedly." When was the last time you heard a piece of bad economic news that didn't include the word "unexpected?"

The worst possiblity is that these two traits aren't mutually exclusive. An incompetent AND arrogant leader may be what we have. Someone who fails to learn from past experience and says that he doesn't have anything to learn.

The arrogant/incompetent meme seems to be gathering steam. Just this morning I saw this from Commentary Magazine:

It’s a deadly combination — intellectual arrogance and lack of sympatico with the public — that leads him again and again to stumble. And when his shortcomings lead to embarrassment or failure, he strikes out in frustration — at Israel, at the media, and at the American people. The image of himself clashes with the results he achieves and the reaction he inspires. No wonder he’s so prickly. You’d be, too, if everyone your entire life had told you that you were swell but now, when the chips are down and the spotlight is on, you are failing so badly in your job.

So we may be in for a "prickly" couple of years. Arrogant, incompetent, or, tragically, both?

Feeling inspired

And maybe restless. A lovely friend, a homeschooling mom, is so faithful about posting to her blog, and I love to read it. And I want to join in the noise again!

I've delinked my blog from the shop, so my customers can't find it unless they really really look. That way, maybe, I can share a little bit of what the view is like from behind the counter. I also have discovered a new passion, horses, and my children continue to grow and change before I can even take a deep breath! Oh, and we're are helping to start a new congregation here in our little town, a Lutheran congregation, but so far unaffiliated with any particular "flavor."

I miss the sharing, although it always feels like I launch my words into the ether that is the interwebs. I've noticed from sitemeter that I've been getting a few hits a week even though the blog has been sleeping, so maybe it's time. Aim low.

Revived.

I'm re-awakening my sleeping blog. More later, but I just signed up for "90 in 90," an effort to read the Constitution and Federalist papers in 90 days. No link yet...Google it and join me!

An open letter to Newt Gingrich

Yes, I haven't posted in a while. The new shop and life keep getting in the way. But tonight as I was doing the dishes I got a phone call from American Solutions, asking if I'd listen to Newt's message and then I was asked for a donation. I listened--I've always liked Mr. Gingrich--but my heart sank as I listened to him. I tried to explain myself to the telemarketer on the other end of the line, but I know all she heard was "No." Anyway, I need to say more...

Dear Mr. Gingrich,

I received a phone call tonight from your organization, American Solutions. When you formed this group I excitedly watched for great ideas to emerge. Maybe, even, a presidential bid. (I understood, but was a little disappointed, when you said you couldn't run because of campaign finance issues and this new group.) I was happy to listen to your recorded message of solutions you were proposing. I think there were supposed to be 12 solutions, but you only listed four or five in the recording.

I didn't donate. I want you to know why: You didn't go far enough.

The time is gone for fretting over spending my tax dollars. This oligarchy in Washington is bent on spending my grandchildren's money at this point. My children didn't get a voice in this. Speak to that, Mr. Speaker. Speak to the worst generational theft ever perpetrated.

Please don't say you'll "end wasteful government spending." The only way to reduce government waste is to reduce the government. We both know it. SAY IT. You have a national platform, so please say it for us.

Talk about the obscene nationalization of the banks and now the car companies. Talk about taking my health care choices out of my hands because the collective will make better decisions for us all. Talk about a system that doesn't apply the rule of law but rather the rule of "who you know."

Your words were weak and timid, Mr. Speaker. Frankly, it surprised me. I am proud to have voted for you back when you represented the 6th district of Georgia, and I've followed your career with its ups and (let's be frank) its downs. In the past, I've admired your boldness, even when the specific ideas were half-baked. I love someone who is willing to say and try new things, and I always new I could count on you for that.

So where has that Newt gone? You are most statesmanlike at your boldest. Please reconsider your position, and the tenor of your statements. We have a President on the edge of a pivotal, and possibly terrible, trip to the Middle East, a current Speaker who condemns the very men and women sworn to protect her and all of us, and a Vice President who is bent on disclosing every secret he's privy to. Step up. You can be the elder statesman here, but be that statesman boldly. Now, of all times, is no time for lukewarm reconciliation. Our country is in peril, Mr. Speaker. You and I both feel it. Please find the boldness that has been your hallmark during your entire career. Our country needs that boldness; our country needs you.

Sincerely,

The mom

Stop!

Watch this:

And go here.  I haven't thoroughly checked these guys out, but Reason TV and the Heritage Foundation are good bona fides.  These kids, and mine, are why I'm attending the Atlanta Tea Party next week with my husband and kids.  Not convinced?  Try this:

On a personal note, I think Nick Gillespie has a great narrator's voice!  But isn't this enough?  When is it enough?

Find a tea party.  Go.  Make a sign.  Speak up.  Go.

ps to Casto:  Hey!  I have a yarn shop...I know, crazy!  Check out the shop site and blog and email me if you are on Ravelry!

Checking in

Just a quick post...I miss blogging, and there is so much going on, and I'd like to share a little of what it's like to open up a business, too.  But this will have to suffice for now.

The shop has been open for ten days now, and it is rolling along nicely.  I'm starting to sell out of a few things, and so one of my worries is how to handle re-ordering, and how to not spend too much!

I hear "We're so glad you are here!" at least three times a day.  That is good for the old ego but at some point you can't coast on that.  Dealing with technology has been a major pain, even with my vaunted Macs.  (Can you believe TWO defective mouses...er, mice?)  

Another surprising pain is display space...how to balance spending money on lovely store fixtures with needing to not spend too much?  Merchandising is key to retail, and it is fun, but biting off a $500 $1000 expense when I'm just starting out is a big decision.  I spent several thousand on fixtures and improvements, but it wasn't quite enough.  Guess I'll be looking for some more today.

The best part?  Just chatting and getting to know my customers!  And seeing my customers meet one another in the store...yesterday at three different times I had groups just sitting and chatting (and they did eventually buy, which is important).  But I really want my shop to be a hub, a gathering place, and I think that it is moving in that direction!

the press conference

Dammit Mr. President.  STOP telling me you "inherited" this or that.  STOP.  I don't care what you inherited.  It is your deal now.  Man up and own it.  

Updated:  Stop it..."it was here when I got here."  God almighty, just own it.  What in heaven's name have we elected?  

I think I'm going to have to turn off the tv.  I've been watching for all of 30 seconds.

Some reading, Lenten and otherwise

I'm deep in the start of Sugarfoot Yarns...that blog is over here.  But life goes on.  Read something briefly this morning so true, so simple and direct and right, though, that I needed to share it.  

I'm against government funding of embryonic stem cell research.  It is wrong, and I think it is dangerous.  God didn't intend for us to meddle in our mortality like this.  But P.J. O'Rourke has made a beautiful argument against it here.  He has cancer...if anyone could "justify" this, he could.  But he doesn't.  Read it.  Obama is wrong, dangerously so, and unfortunately the "least of these" will be the ones to pay for his ignorance.

I didn't give up anything for Lent, but I tried to take on a Lenten discipline of reading a book.  So for me it is Seven Storey Mountain by Thomas Merton.  I'm only a little into it, but so far it is excellent.  I'll share more later, but I'd encourage you to pick it up.

Too far?

Has he gone too far?  A trillion here, a trillion there, that's just money between friends, right?  But this, trying to negotiate with that guy up there by LETTER?  God help us all.

Oh no they didn't

They did.

Resistance one at a time

There are lots of us who are mad.  You aren't alone and neither am I.  Remember that.

Now, watch this:

(via The Anchoress.)  I was surprised at how calm and adult Reagan sounds.  (Sounded?) And smart.  And how I hear distressingly little of that in our current President's voice.

Finally, go here and join.  You aren't alone, and neither am I.

Video you must see

I DON'T CARE which side of the stimulus (I use that term loosely) plan you are on.  The fact that Congress voted on it in the manner in which they did should be, at a minimum, disturbing.  

Not one person has read this and they are spending my children's money.  Not one person.  I want to hear one--just ONE--Congressman justify his "yes" vote on a bill that neither he nor his staff could read.

Apparently only barely back...

First, let me just share that starting a shop is a lot of work.  A LOT.  But it is also incredibly fun--so many balls to keep in the air:  the contractors, the sales reps, all the "official" stuff like the LLC and tax numbers, publicity.  I am having a good time.

And it is a good thing, because the news is so depressing that I would otherwise just cry.  The ultra-maroons (Thanks, Bugs!) in Washington are stealing from my children and grandchildren.  Stealing from me, I could handle.  I didn't vote for those guys, but I did vote, and this is how the system works.  My children, on the other hand, didn't have a vote.  This is taxation without representation, and as I recall this is the reason we had the Revolution in the first place.  For the first time in my life I am so angry, so disgusted that I understand what my ancestors were thinking when they went to war against England.  I GET IT.  And I want to do something but I feel powerless.

Ronald Reagan once said, "All great ideas in America begin around the dinner table."  And the other night I had an idea...the Million Kid March.  Imagine a million kids with their parents on the Mall or right in front of the capital, protesting this disgusting act.  Heck, I'd take a few thousand.  My poor children, wide-eyed at their mother's anger at this fraud they are perpetrating on the American people, decided that it sounded great.  I want someone to plan it, tell me where to go and I'll show up, four kids in tow.  We live ten hours from Washington and as busy as I am, we would do it.  Would you?  Could we plan this?  What are your ideas?  

Here's one of my ideas...talk about this, to anyone who will listen.  Call the shows, contact the big bloggers.  Congress isn't listening (except:  shout out to my Congressman, Lynn Westmoreland, for the anti-pork pledge) so we have to find other channels.  We can't let this go without a fight.  The conference committee has given us a few extra days...could we do this?

See?  I told you I'm angry.  Instead I'm pouring my energy into things I can control, but it makes me feel weak.  What can we do?

Special shout-out to Jean:  sorry to hear about your hurt shoulder.  Take care, and use the time to watch some great movies.  

Whew! I'm Back

Crazy January.  And I know I should have posted, but I was cooking up something and just couldn't seem to get up the energy to blog.  But I'm fine.  In case you were worried.

So here's the deal...I've decided to open a yarn shop, the kind of little local spot people can come to and hang out and have a cup of coffee and BUY YARN.  (I have to pay the rent!)  I know it seems bizarre.  I just quit school, and now this?  Well, back before Thanksgiving DH and I were eating dinner and I told him, "I should just open a yarn shop."  And he said, "I think that's a great idea!"  So of course I was off and running, reading books about retail and yarns and looking at every store in the area.  I haven't been knitting my whole life, either, so I've been knitting like a madwoman.  

This is soon!  The landlord in exactly the spot I wanted came through with a very generous offer, so he pushed my timetable up a lot.  The lease starts on Sunday, and there is an incredible amount to think about:  business license, POS system, renovating the space, meeting with vendors and sales reps, trying to get the word out about the new shop.

The web site will be up soon, and when it is I'll post a link to it.  I'm not going to link from there back to this blog, though, because I still like talking about politics and I don't want to mix business with that.

So, here we go.  DH has always been an entrepreneur but I never have been.  Retail can be challenging...lots of time in the store, dealing with the public, the inventory.  But it is also so exciting.  I don't want this to be a bad bet.  There is an expression:  "Worried women knit."  Let's hope that lots of worried women find their way to my store!  (Men, too.  We're equal opportunity knitters!)

Sarah Palin Interview

My favorite Republican is back, being interviewed by John Ziegler of howobamagotelected.com. Check out the video:  

It's worth watching the whole thing.  I'm looking forward to hearing more from her in the next few years.  And can anyone really say she less qualified than Joe "Jobs-is-a-three-letter-word" Biden?

Upside down and Inside out

Did you ever look at the news at just think, "What the hell is going on?"  (Sorry about the cursing...I don't use it that often but it is good for when you need that extra emphasis.)  That was my day yesterday, like a nightmare, but now I can't seem to wake up.  I was actually YELLING at poor DH yesterday over the idiocy going on right now, both locally and nationally, even internationally.  The yelling didn't last, by the way; we both started laughing and then poured another glass of wine.  Anyway...

Read this article.  Seriously.  No, I mean NOW.  (And then come back!)  Atlas Shrugged, way back when I read it, was the longest novel I had ever read, 1,064 pages.  It was powerful, the kind of book that really makes you look around at things in a new way.  Stephen Moore has perfectly captured what is going on right now and shows how it lines up with the novel.  Good Lord, he is right.

Locally, our school board made Drudge a couple of days ago, which you know must mean something utterly ridiculous must have happened.  It did.  Not only do they want to make the teachers give back their 2.5% raise, the superintendent also wants to send out an additional property tax (retroactive) to all of us property owners.  We just passed a SPLOST here, for an extra 1% sales tax, not that I voted for it.  And back in July all of the incompetent I mean incumbent school board members were reelected without a whiff of a budget problem.  Something is truly rotten there.  I can look at this like a purely financial issue since I don't have kids in the system and it makes me so mad!  They have wasted so much money on real estate speculation and a bloated county administrative staff that it is hardly a surprise that problems are showing up now.

Nationally, oh, so much.  Obama wants to spend a TRILLION dollars getting us out of the poor economic conditions we're in.  What in the world makes in seem like taking the money from me and you, giving it to the government, and then having the government disburse the money to worthy projects is a better, more productive way to stimulate the economy than just letting all of us keep more of our money and using it as we see fit?  The U.S. Conference of Mayors is salivating...they have a 1557 page list of "shovel ready" projects!  Here is a partial list of those worthy projects...I swear I could not make this up if I tried.  Well, maybe, but take a look:

$35 million for the Music Hall of Fame in Florissant, Mo.; $35 million for the Scottsdale Museum of the West in Arizona and $20 million for the Virginia Key Beach Museum in Miami, Fla.

This is brilliant...we are in debt, so let's spend more.  I think I'll try that here at home, because there are these shoes I've been eyeing...

The porn industry wants a bailout.  Rich.  These people should be embarrassed to be associated with this business.  Instead they are bold enough to ask for your money and mine to save their sick business.  I think they won't get the money, but they have the nerve to ask!

Charlie Rangel's ethics investigation was supposed to be done by January 3.  Nancy Pelosi had promised!  But now it has been delayed.  Even better, thanks to Pelosi's rule changes, Rangel looks likely to not only continue serving "honorably" but also as the chair of the Ways and Means Committee for as long as he wants.  This is truly the fox guarding the henhouse.  What is wrong with the Republicans??  Why aren't they out in front of cameras talking about these things all the time?

Seriously?  You want to put a 70-year-old guy into a position for which he has only tangential experience, as Chief of Staff for Clinton, into one of the most important positions in the whole country?  Panetta as CIA chief is flat-out scary.  Transitions are high times for attacks, and I want a professional spook or ambassador in that position, not some high-level manager.  And look at the intelligence decisions made during the Clinton years:  the first World Trade bombing in 1993, the U.S.S. Cole bombing, the explosion of Al-Qeada (no pun intended).  This is a bad pick, and worse yet it is dangerous to all of us.

This was such a cheerful post!  Hopefully I'll find some good new to share later.

Changing the House

Not mine, Pelosi's.  I mean, she seems to think it's hers to change.  The Democrats are doing some rule changing, making their majority harder to overcome.  This is terrible, in fact, turning back the clock and making everything less clear--did you even think that was possible with the Congress?! What they are really doing is undoing some of the changes put in during Gingrich's Contract with America days.  So apparently, openness is good when the Republicans are in charge, but once the Democrats win then let's shut things down.

And related to my previous post about the word "rule," look at the fourth and fifth paragraphs from the bottom of the AP article:  "four decades of Democratic rule" versus "Republicans took control."  Words mean things.

The rule of words

Words mean things.  Which is why the repeated use of the word "rule" with regard to the government is really bugging me.

When I was in high school civics we were introduced to the concept of the "rule of law."  I found it a confusing phrase, because I kept thinking of a ruler, like with inches and feet, and not a ruler of a country.  But I finally get it, that the authority of the government in our country vests not in any one person or group of people, but in the Constitution.  Those people elected to government, in particular the President and by extension the rest of the executive branch, are guardians of the Constitution.  The President does not RULE.  The laws rule.  

So why does it seem like I see "Obama's rule begins" or "Pelosi's rule" (I know, Pelosi, how scary is that?) in the press so often?  I really don't recall the word "rule" associated with Bush or the Republicans in years past, but I am sure hearing it a lot now with regard to the Dems.  So I'll google it and see what I get:  2,140 hits, and I agree that all of them don't apply.  But that doesn't include the infamous "Obama will be ready to rule on day one" quote from the campaign.  I DON'T WANT A RULER!  What about the Democrats in general?  909 in the past year.

So what about Bush?  Okay, 5570, but I went through the first through pages and all of these refer to rules made by the Bush administration.  Rule of Bush?  123, and it looks like a lot of those are bloggers.  (Maybe I can finally get Googled by someone!)  But, from what I can find, no one is using "ready to rule" or "not ready to rule." 

So here's my point...there is a glee surrounding Obama and the Congressional Democrats, and it is coming from within and also from the main-stream media.  We didn't elect a new king, we elected a guardian of the Constitution.  The problem is that if we start looking at the "rule of Obama" or  Pelosi or whomever, then they step outside of the law.  The perception is that the ruler creates the rules and is not subject to them.  It isn't true, at least not yet.  The problem is that if you say something often enough then it becomes the truth.  (Lenin said that, not me.)  I don't want this to become the truth.

The New Year is Off and Running

No posting last weekend...yes, we were at the lake.  We got seven glorious days down there, quite a lot for us, and now we are pulling things together here, taking down the Christmas stuff (high time!), and generally getting ready to go back to real life.  The kids don't start back until tomorrow, so that gives us a day to find uniform shoes, clean out backpacks and get haircuts so that we are all ready for tomorrow.  I thought January 6 seemed late to go back, but right now it is terrific...it is raining, wet and grey outside right now, and it would have been tough to roll everyone out of bed at 6:50 this morning!

A quick update on some of my Christmas stuff, because I know you are waiting:

Aquaglobes rock!  I went out and got a couple of houseplants and set up my aquaglobes in them.  They are actually attractive and my plants seem to be getting watered steadily.  This may be the answer to my black thumb with indoor plants, and I'm thrilled.

Wii Fit is awesome, too.  I've used it a little every day, and while it is no fun seeing my weight on the screen every day, it does provide a little incentive to eat a little less or make different choices.  My balance scores are improving and I especially like the Hula Hoop and Boxing games.  (Hey, Casto, definitely put this on your list after you've played Wii sports enough.  We had ours for about eight months before I got my board, and it is the perfect thing to keep me coming back.)

We watched Prince Caspian a couple of nights ago...if you love the Narnia books then it is a great movie.  DH never read them (I know, how is that possible) and so he sees the movies as a pale imitation of the Lord of the Rings movies.  Still good, just not as great as those.  I loved the books and love the movies so far.  Voyage of the Dawn Treader was always my favorite book in the series so I'm really looking forward to the next movie.  Now that I'm writing about it, I see that Disney has pulled out of the project.  I hope Walden can find another partner, so I can see this one on the big screen.

Time to get everyone going today, get our chores done, and enjoy this last day of freedom (for them...my freedom starts tomorrow!).

My DS9...

was looking at an "Events of 2008" pictorial review (which is available here, click on "year in news").  He saw a picture of our favorite Russian leader, and read the caption out loud, until...

"...Vla-duh-meer....POOTIN!  Ha!  Hey, Mom, he's POOTIN'!  POOTIN' POOTIN'!  What kind of stupid name is that?!  POOTIN' POOTIN' POOTIN'!"

Sometimes it takes a nine-year-old to put scary world leaders in perspective.

(Updated:  I changed DD to DS.  Sorry, buddy.)

I got one!

Do you remember this ad:

I got one!!  Yes, I'm now the proud owner of a part of history, "commemorating the day the world changed forever."  (I'm not sure if that is threatening or merely creepy.)  Thanks, Steve!  I'm displaying it in a prominent place for as long as I can stomach it.  And when I find my **)#$% camera, then I'll share with the rest of the world.

I'm a College Drop-out

It's official...I withdrew from school today.  Technically that means that I'm just not taking classes next semester, but I doubt I go back.  Wow--I just realized that what it really means is that I may have taken my Last. Final. Ever.  Awesome.

I have mixed feelings, really.  I believed when I started the application process that I was being called to the "next thing" in my life, and now I wonder...did I hear wrong?  Or maybe this is just leading me somewhere else?  Because the further I get from school the more relieved I feel! 

The classes I took this fall were great, some of the most useful classes I've ever been a part of. But the more I learned about the counseling profession, the less it felt right or natural for me.  So many things that I love and that are important to me can't enter into a counselor-client relationship, and I don't think I can check that much of myself at the door.  God gave me this weird combination of gifts for a purpose, I suppose, and so I can only have faith that He knows what He's doing.  And I have to keep asking, "Is this right?  Or this?"  I like to think that one of the challenges that I took on in the last year was just to step out in faith and try something completely different, and to do it without a grim focus on the outcome.  I feel really good about that.

So, for now, my winter and spring are wide open, ready to fill with field-trip-chaperoning, after-school activities, reading for fun, and maybe a little sewing or gardening.  And blogging. Lots of blogging.

Tuesday Round-Up

Isn't that a lovely picture?  It's the sixth day of Christmas, after all, and so instead of geese a-laying I'm giving you Mary and Eve.  It's from the Anchoress, and drawn by Sister Grace Remington.

On to progressively more worldly matters...

Apparently, religious people have more self-discipline than those who are spiritual but don't subscribe to one particular set of beliefs.  I think the researcher who did this work is right in his conclusion that religion can imbue our daily lives with a sense of the sacred, but his solution is way off the mark:

“People can have sacred values that aren’t religious values,” he said. “Self-reliance might be a sacred value to you that’s relevant to saving money. Concern for others might be a sacred value that’s relevant to taking time to do volunteer work. You can spend time thinking about what values are sacred to you and making New Year’s resolutions that are consistent with them.”

So if I decide a value is sacred to me then it makes it easier to act in a way consistent with that value.  Which is a great idea except that the sacred doesn't emerge from within me, or from within you.  (I hope I'm not the first to tell you that.) God alone is holy, as the Psalms tell us repeatedly, and our religious practices are just an imperfect but worthy way to share in that holiness.

Hey!  Look at this!  Chrysler just wanted to say thanks...I think we know a little of why they're in financial difficulty.  Our tax dollars at work, ugh.  Apparently these add purchases cost in excess of a million dollars.  I know, compared with the $4 billion they'll soon receive it doesn't seem like much, but it seems to reflect the same attitude that led the CEOs to take their private jets to beg for bail-out money.

Congressional watch:  Chris Dodd, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee is coming under increasing fire for being a Friend of Angelo.  Good.  He looks dirty and this matter needs to be made clear.  Charlie Rangel, of New York, is already in hot water (we hope) over his tax evasion problems; now it's come out that he even is using campaign funds to pay parking tickets.  (via Instapundit, Rangel's fate apparently hangs in the balance right now...good)  And Franken, who's not in the Senate yet, looks poised to take the seat in Minnesota.  I was born in Minnesota, but thankfully left before the lake-water craziness could overtake me. What are they thinking up there??!!

Let's see, what else?  Oh, the Flight 93 families are encouraging the federal government to just confiscate the land where their loved ones' remains lay.  I understand their wanting the memorial, and I think it should be treated as the cemetery that it is.  But the land is owned by a quarry and the owners should be compensated.  If they don't want to deal with the Feds, then pressure them buy publicizing the process, or by trying to buy the land yourself and then donating it to the government.  I'm reading Jonah Goldberg's Liberal Fascism right now; what these families are proposing is using the muscle (and guns) of the government to further their goals.  I don't want to throw the term around the term, but this looks like fascism to me.

This was a long post!  Lots to look at.  Don't forget to post what you got for Christmas...see below!

Merry Belated Christmas!

Well, I took an unintentionally long break!  We headed down to the lake right after Christmas, for a long weekend.  Part of the appeal of our lake house is the peace, and maintaining the peace means NO INTERNET.  So, no blogging.

Our Christmas was wonderful...DH and I had agreed to cut back (hot tubs not selling like they have in the past, you know, and stupid government officials not helping matters), but I really don't think the kids noticed one bit.  That's a lesson we are going to hold on to, I think. We decorated a lot less, too, which I kind of missed during the month but now that I'm thinking of the clean-up seems pretty awesome.

Ann over at Gorgeous Things' blog asked the question, "What'd you get?" So here are my answers: A Wii Fit Board!!  It is so much fun, and we have all had a good time playing with that.  I also got Aquaglobes (DD5 can recite the commercial by heart), some Georgia Tech paraphenalia, this cute dress from my mom (Thanks!), and a couple of cool books.  Wow, listing it makes it look like a lot!

So what did you get?  Did you do anything different to celebrate?  Post your link in the comments, or just list it there!  Lots to blog about, as usual.  Sometimes the hardest part is choosing good topics.  More later, I hope.

It's not one individual post, so much...

more like the accumulated hilarity of all of them.

By the time I got to Ritalin kitty I couldn't breathe.  Better now, thanks.

Music, seasonal and not so much

I just discovered the Smoking Popes from a video over at Chicago Boyz...check it out:

I was thinking how cool it was to find a young group but then according to Wiki these guys are about my age!  I must not be that old.

On a more seasonal note, here is DS10's favorite song of the season:

Enjoy!

Smelly things

I just ran across this article in the Economist about why we pick the scents or perfumes that we do.  Three basic messages there:  first, scent makes a guy ACT differently, in a way that is apparently more attractive to women--so it's the way he acts, not really the scent, that gets the girl.  Second, we pick each other based on scent, and we look for people whose scents are different than our own.  Third, DO NOT BUY your significant other a new scent unless you aren't getting along.

This makes me remember this research, though:  birth control pills alter women's sense of smell.  So if your best girl is on the Pill, go ahead and buy her the perfume.  But if she quits taking them, she'll quit liking it and you!

And this seems like a questionable idea.  Really, I can't think of too many women, Pill or no, who would go for this.  

Government Intervention

The story I'm going to tell you is a little "inside baseball," but it's important for a couple of reasons:  its a small but powerful example of the power of unaccountable government; it illustrates the havoc an arrogant organization can wreak; its another instance of government telling private business what to do.  On with my tale...

DH makes parts that move water, specifically all kinds of plastic jets, filters, drains, for pools, spas, tubs and, significantly, the portable spa industry.  (That's what you probably think of as a "hot tub."  Cue wonky 70s music.)  Their parts are subject to regulation by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and to standards promulgated by industry.  (Loads of money gets spent at various testing labs proving the parts' safety.)  

A couple of years ago, James Baker's granddaughter Virginia was tragically killed in a spa accident.  Her hair became entangled in the drain of the outdoor spa that was attached to the swimming pool, and she drowned despite several men trying to pull her out.  This led to the Virginia Graeme Baker Act, which strengthened requirements for drains in all of these types of pools and spas.  The CPSC mandated this without an understanding of the different flow rates and designs of pools vs. hot tubs vs. in-ground spas.  (Incidentally, the drain of the pool where little Virginia drowned was incorrectly installed in the first place.)

The industry association APSA immediately saw the problem...applying pool requirements to a portable spa would be impossible.  There is virtually no way to comply.  Additionally, compliance doesn't actually make the portable spas safer!  Every single spa, including those sitting on showroom floors, must comply with the new standard.  That's unheard of in product safety for something that big.  Hot tub manufacturers are looking at their warehouses and seeing a bunch of unsellable merchandise.  And it can't be made sellable because there are no parts available to retrofit the spas with.  No part manufacturer can pass the tests.

So, hot tub companies have hired lobbyists (natch) and everyone is holding their breath...the requirements go into effect today.  There are no parts that satisfy the requirement.  

The CPSC is well aware of this situation...they've been told since the law came out.  Why won't they change the regulation?  They don't want to admit they've made a mistake.  The CPSC doesn't want to even give the impression of making things less safe.  Instead, they prefer to put an entire industry out of business.  The problem is that this industry is small, too small for a bailout.  No one will notice if a bunch of $50 million or $100 million companies go out of business.  As I write this I am so angry--powerful bureaucrats who have no sense of scale, fearful only of looking bad while an entire industry looks on and holds its breath.

How can we possibly believe that turning anything over to this entity is a good thing?  We want them to run mortgage houses, car companies, health insurance?  Really?  For that matter, why would we even want this mindset involved in our children's education?  

If the story changes, and it probably will quickly, I'll keep you posted.  Meanwhile, I hold my breath, too.

If at first you don't succeed...

go ask the President.

I'm disgusted.  And disenfranchised.  

Observations

There has been so much in the news lately, and it's so overwhelming that I'm not sure where to start...so I'll just jump in.

The Blago thing just looks dirtier and dirtier.  But do you remember the sit-in staged by workers at Republic Windows in Illinois?  They did it earlier this year; the company had closed when BoA said "no more money." Blagojevich strong-armed BoA, saying he'd take away state business if BoA didn't loan Republic more money.  At the time I thought it was an astonishing threat--how dare he interfere in the private sector like that?  Apparently, though, interfering is the name of the game for this governor.

It also continues a disturbing trend of government officials telling private companies what to do.  Think about what we are seeing at all levels:  Fannie and Freddie collapsed under the weight of subprime loans they were ordered to make by Congress; an auto bailout will subject those companies to the oversight of a "car czar;" incentives and threats to locate new plants in locations (less egregious but still). I have another story that I'll tell in a second post about something going on in DH's industry, threatening to put the entire industry out of business.  (Where's their bailout?) 

But I want to stay on this for a moment...I didn't realize until yesterday that Rahm Emanuel worked at Freddie Mac for a while, riding the gravy train.  Who else?  Gov. Tom Vilsak has just been named Ag Secretary.  He was responsible for taking away local control of hog farms in Iowa, among other things.  That has been terrible for the water quality in several communities.  He's also tied in tight to Monsanto and ADM...neither party will take on these guys, but it looks like were in for, at the best, more of the same.  Both of those companies are also big into food-based biofuels, which are responsible for driving up food prices with no comparable benefit in the fuel department.  

Arne Duncan will be Secretary of Education.  He's from Chicago, of course, and Bill Ayers has spoken highly of him (yes, I know they've gotten crossways with each other, too).  Mostly, that one is that he is from Chicago.  Really?  Another Chicago guy?  We are seeing the unwinding of a dirty, Byzantine political machine and I cannot believe that there are too many clean guys up there.  

It occurs to me that if someone from that pool really is clean, as it appears Obama is, then there were other people working very hard to make sure he stayed clean.  I wonder what the real story is there.  None of this feels very hopey or changey.

I'll try to check on some more cabinet members later.  I want to do that other post and also need to make some cookies.  Tis the season!

UPDATE:  Here is some information on Holdren, Obama's science advisor.  And here.

A night out

I know, you can't see who that is beyond the sound board there.  It's Harry Connick, Jr., last night at the Cobb Energy Center.  Wow!  What a fabulous show...two solid hours of Christmas music and New Orleans jazz.  My sister and I took our mom for her birthday (Happy Birthday, Mom!) and we were all just blown away.

Harry is a great showman...he started off and I thought, "oh, no, he seems tired, like he's been doing this too many nights." But after the first song he seemed to wake up and get a lot of energy from the crowd, joking about the usual (drunk) crowd at Chastain compared to this group, bantering with a couple of little girls in the front two rows, sharing stories about his chickens and the roosters Obama and McCain.  One got eaten.  Guess which?  And the music!  His whole band is really first rate.

If you get a chance to see him live, by all means go.  I'm looking forward to seeing him again.  Hopefully with less spray tan, but from a distance you can't really see that!

Well, that was 20 minutes I'll never get back.

But it was worth it.

Bush's Goodbyes

Say what you will, and I've said plenty, but George Bush is a good man.  He showed up in Iraq this weekend, and you can just see how much he loves the troops and how much they love him (via Instapundit):

And then there was the shoe-throwing incident...you know, calling Bush a dog isn't quite the insult the guy intended.  (See above.) Most Americans think more highly of their dogs than their next-door-neighbors.  

He also showed up in Afghanistan, which was a surprise on top of the Iraq surprise.  Again, he loves these troops, and it shows.  It's one of my favorite things about him.  

I think Bush's failing is that he didn't have a guiding philosophy beyond keeping us safe.  Admittedly, that was a tough job thrust upon him in the early days of his presidency.  But economically, WOW.  When he was elected I thought, "oh, good, he has an MBA and he gets finance, how to motivate people, how to run things."  I was wrong.  Our President needs to have a vision of liberty beyond not being attacked on our land, and I prefer a president who has a guiding vision of government (small) and the role of taxes and government spending in the country.  Reagan is a great example of that, someone who had developed an over-arching vision of smaller government, lower taxes, and staying out of people's lives.  Anyway.  Back to Bush...what a modest, humble man.  Hopefully you saw this interview, but he said this when asked about the Bible:  "I'm just a simple president."  That is humility.  Jay Nordlinger has a long interview with Bush over here. Here is a different view, from Bush himself:

Chew over this, too: “The real challenge will be for a president to never substitute pragmatism for an idealistic vision, because if you do, you have delayed the capacity to marginalize and ultimately defeat the ideology of the extremists.” You and I know that pragmatism is often necessary and called for, and the president knows it too. (That’s why so many “freedom agenda” people are disappointed in him, particularly given the policies, or non-policies, of the second term.) But I know what he means, and I suspect you do, too.

I think he was amazingly clear-headed on defending us.  Did anyone really think that we would go seven years without another attack after 9/11/2001?  I didn't.  But I wish he'd been so clear with economics.  

Church Arson

I read about this on Team Sarah this morning...arson at Sarah Palin's home church.  Oh, how sad.  I love my church, and I can't imagine how it would feel to know that someone hated me SO MUCH that they would torch my place of worship.  Devastating, really.  Churches seem to be a target of arsonists, but this act has so much wrapped up in one member.

Of course, it's only a suspicious fire right now, since I want to be fair.  (Shocker!) But I think the whole congregation at Wasilla Bible Church and the Palin family would be glad to know they are in our prayers this weekend. 

Oh, and if you haven't yet, join Team Sarah!  Sixty-one thousand members and counting...it doesn't mean you have sold your vote out yet.  I look at it as a commitment to the up-and-coming conservatives who are spread across the nation learning the executive position by running their states and running them well:  Palin, Pawlenty, Jindal, Otter...plenty more to keep our eyes on!

School is finished

Yes, I turned in my last paper last week.  If you've never written a five-to-seven page self-exploration using racial identity models by Cross and Helms, well, you just haven't lived. Sarcasm?  Why, yes. Yes, it is.  

Now that I've gotten to the end of the semester I can take a longer view, step back and see if this counseling gig is what I want.  And I'm not so sure.  What I thought I wanted out of counseling was the opportunity to help people find their way.  I believe that God created us all for something uniquely special to each of us, and to be able to help another person find that something special--I look at this as such a privilege.  But it might not be one I'm cut out for.

The counseling relationship is inherently limiting--so private that a counselor can't ethically say "hi" when bumping into a client at the grocery store.  And it can also be kind of artificial in other ways...no invitations to dear clients' weddings, no shared cups of coffee and conversation, always a power differential, no matter how you try to overcome it.  I think I knew this going in but now I find myself chafing at the idea of inhabiting that world all the time.

And I do have another idea...call it a mid-life crisis or utter confusion, whatever.  I might open a store, the kind of place customers can come and hang out and learn things and form friendships.  A spot that would appeal to people of lots of different ages--I love the idea of inter-generational activities and friendships.  And the kind of place I can be creative with windows and displays and ordering...there is a certain appeal.  So I'm looking into that.  I might post some more about this later.  DH is on board, bless his heart.  So we'll see.  That's what I'm going to use this school break for.  Oh, and blogging.

Shhh...don't tell Biscuit

I think I've figured out what my dog (Biscuit) is getting for Christmas...a new collar!  Check out these Survival collars.  (That picture looks just like my Biscuit.) Althouse had linked to the bracelets, which are also extremely cool, especially the ones with the stainless clasp.  And, hey, if you ever need to use it, they'll rewind it for free!  Great for the MacGyvers in your life:

Back with some links

I'm turning my last paper in this afternoon, which explains the dead air around here.  Meanwhile, can you guess who that cute guy is?  You'll have to go here to find out.  Yeah, I was really surprised, too!

And have you seen the coffee commercial with Ozzy?  Wait, it's not a coffee commercial, but it should be, because I can't remember what they are really advertising.  Anyway, DH remembered this little bit and it is worth resurrecting:

I think we needed some levity.  I've only been paying a little attention to the news lately. I'll catch up today, but I have to say it is scary.  Nationalization--that was the headline on Drudge.  What makes Nancy Pelosi think she can run a bank, a car company, or an insurer better than people who have spent their lives doing it?  (Although I have to say they haven't exactly been doing a stellar job, either.) I don't know about you, but I'm feeling pretty powerless right now.  And I'm wondering again, Where's MY Bailout?

Sorry so quiet!

Christmas stuff and the conclusion of school have gotten in the way.  I haven't even been able to get to pay as much attention as I'd like to the bailout baloney, although my general impression is that the senators are unimpressed, just not to the same extent as the rest of us.

Financial news continues to worry...but there are a lot of good sources of basic information.  I've started getting John Mauldin's financial newsletter, available here.  You have to register for it, but there's no detectable spam associated with it.  

School stuff?  I'm not done yet?!  Nope, one more paper, due Tuesday.  I have to write about myself, my cultural background, and how I look at people of backgrounds different than mine.  I've learned some things this semester, definitely.  But I have to say that if you approach another person as Jesus instructed us to, it is a lot easier to get your head around.  Unconditional positive regard (a wonderful concept originated by Rogers) is at the heart of Christian love.  It doesn't mean condoning a person's actions; instead, it is having a positive attitude to the person you are with.  For me, it's the same as looking at every person as someone God loves.  If you really try to look at people that way it can change you.  I don't quite know how a person who doesn't believe this summons the fortitude to feel positive towards people without any help at all.  Just a thought.

DD5 and I are going to inventory the baking supplies, too, to get started on some cookies.  Tis the season.

Finally, out of the mouths of babes...DD7 is taking art lessons.  A professional artist friend of my dad's saw her paintings and was suitably impressed.  When I told DD7, she sighed and said, "Well, I guess I can be an artist.  But then I'll have to give up my dream."  "What's your dream, baby?" "To be an actress." *sigh* I hate that she'll have to give up her dream of being an actress to be an artist.  I want to live in her world.

And DD5 just started taking horseback riding lessons this week.  She's been obsessed with cowgirls and (inexplicably) Texas for a long time.  She just informed me, "I'm going to grow up and be a famous horseback rider in Texas.  And I'll throw everyone two-handed kisses." I'd live in her world, too.

Have a good day!

Hey, that's me!

Over here at the Corner.  Which is what I was doing instead of blogging.

Teenagers and Ethics

Here's the headline:  "American teens lie, steal, cheat at 'alarming' rates."  A study by Josephson Institute surveyed a bunch of kids from all kinds of backgrounds, and found that the already-high rates of unethical behavior are even higher today than two years ago.  *sigh*

If you read through the article, it talks about increasing numbers of kids lying to parents.  That number, well, kids have been lying to their parents for millenia.  But more alarming is the finding that 30% of kids reported stealing from a store within the past year.  Nearly one-in-three.  To me that speaks to a huge sense of entitlement.  Also, my parents would have KILLED me and then died of mortification themselves had I been caught doing something like this.  So there seems to be no fear, no respect for boundaries or rules, from a very large minority.

Finally, cheating in school.  I used to do my friends' French homework because I really enjoyed French.  But I only have one experience with test cheating (in college), and I was being cheated from...the girl next to me kept trying to look at my paper.  I got so mad that I went and told the professor.  Anyway.  There seems to be no fear, and a sense that as long as everything looks fine (like a good grade) it doesn't really matter if the look reflects reality.

The end of the article tells the rest of the story:

Some 93 percent of students indicated satisfaction with their own character and ethics, with 77 percent saying that "when it comes to doing what is right, I am better than most people I know."

All of the proponents of self-esteem education have gotten their wish:  an entire population who thinks very highly of themselves.  It also sounds like they have a low view of their peers--"I might be bad but most people I know are worse." 

I think we need to give our kids more opportunities to fail, to pick themselves up and become resilient.  Having some experience with low grades, getting caught, getting in trouble...these aren't the end of the world.  If a person can't deal with these things, how in the world will they deal with the life events that truly are bad?

And, quick!

Just saw this, it is for real, it is hilarious, but I have to run:

At American Digest, via Instapundit.

About Education...

Rarely do I read something in the Wall Street Journal that I disagree so much with, but today's the day.  So, while I should be doing some last minute studying, I feel compelled to make some comments about it.

This article is written by a former IBM CEO who is now very involved in School Reform (Alert! Danger Will Robinson!).  First, I'll say that he has a couple of points...first, that school class size isn't as much of an issue as you might think.  I like my kids' classes of 15, but research has shown that they aren't critical to excellent education.  However, he has some terrible ideas about improving things:

Abolish all local school districts, save 70 (50 states; 20 largest cities). Some states may choose to leave some of the rest as community service organizations, but they would have no direct involvement in the critical task of establishing standards, selecting teachers, and developing curricula.

What?  NO WAY.  Local control is very important, and I say that knowing what a bunch of igmos we have in our local school board.  Bigger bureaucracies just mean more layers for incompetence or fiefdoms to develop.  The best system we've ever been a part of is the smallest, consisting of exactly two elementary schools, one middle, and one high.  Yes, it's private, but it's lean and mean, educates kids for less than the local school board (NOT including special education services), and I believe in it.  Next idea...

Establish a National Skills Day on which every third, sixth, ninth and 12th-grader would be tested against the national standards. Results would be published nationwide for every school in America.

Um, no.  No, no, no.  What good does this do?  It attaches our leadership even more to high test scores (not to mention taking yet another instructional day away from the teachers).  In our area, of very high scores, the school board and principals have such a death grip on high scores (did you know high scoring schools--GASP!--affect property values?) that they are unwilling to try new approaches which might serve their students better.  In my opinion, if you are going to publish scores, it's either "Pass" or "Fail," no more.  That leaves passing systems free to try magnets, single-sex, other ideas which may suit their population better than the one-size-fits-all approach recommended by this guy.

Establish national standards for teacher certification and require regular re-evaluations of teacher skills. Increase teacher compensation to permit the best teachers (as measured by advances in student learning) to earn well in excess of $100,000 per year, and allow school leaders to remove underperforming teachers.

Pay teachers, fine.  But what kind of corporate job lets you have at least three weeks off in 10 months, plus another two month? I've worked in corporate America, and as far as I know the answer is "none." Teaching is a calling for the best teachers, but not every teacher can be a best teacher (by definition).  I can buy trying to improve the education departments in colleges--unfortunately they usually have the lowest standards for entry in the university.  But I have too many friends and family who work or have worked in public education to believe that these "best" teachers wouldn't really be the best at kowtowing to the leadership.  

The problem in both of these is that the emphasis is on the teachers looking UP, at their bosses, not DOWN, at the children they are supposed to be educating.  Even my language there is wrong--the process should be driven by the children and their best interests.

It's interesting to me that nowhere does Gerstner mention parents.  Does that tell you something?  Just turn your little darlings over to the state, they'll be WELL cared for.  Contrast that with this article, written by a college student.  I don't agree with everything there, either, but even without kids and reams of "educational leadership," he gets it.  Hope for the future, if it will wait for us!

I feel strongly that we have a lot wrong with our school organizations, in particular too much bureaucracy or administration and too much emphasis on the next new curriculum.