Menu of the Day:
What's playing: Ryan Adams "If i am a stranger".
In my glass: another glass of that cheap Australian Penguin chardonnay.
Quote: Saying ‘I’m sorry’ is the same as saying ‘I apologize.’ Except at a funeral.” - Demetri Martin (love that guy!)
The best thing that happened this week: Not much, but i don't take for granted these days that i am healthy, that i have a job & even that i have time to write this blog.
The worst thing: that my friend Sarah got me addicted again to, of all things, the Mary Worth comic strip. (It is so lame, and like Gumbo i broke the tradition of checking it out, until now.)
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1. Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot. (Again.)
2. Is Mitt Romney really the best looking Republican i can think of?
3. I'm thinking ....yes.
4. It's Read Across America week. I'm thinking Bobby Jindal gave his speech last week in celebration of Dr. Seuss.
5. I have no idea why i am writing about political stuff today because i have not even been watching MSNBC since i can remember. (Including Rachel Maddow.)
6. I work for public school unions. For 20 years i have believed in what i do. Until recently. These economic times are starting to make me see things alittle bit differently.
7. Should i buy the new U2 cd? (I heard they were on Letterman ALL week long, which has never been done.)
8. The only music i never get tired of is Ryan Adams.
9. I so hate washing my hair. If i were 20 years old I would wear dreadlocks. I have super thick hair so i think it would have looked cool.
10. Because i can't get into any books lately that i have bought, I think i am going to read East of Eden again. This will be my third time in the past 25 years.
11. I never did finish Edgar Sawtelle. And i am having trouble with the new book by that Broken for You author. And that Broken book was one of my top 10.
12. Some people deserve killing.
13. The above photo is one of me and Kylee taken at Crystal Mountain. I imagine this would be the summer of 1992 or 1993. (I love this photo! Brian took it.)
14. Here is a photo of her taken last month in her Seattle apartment. She's almost 20.
37 comments:
OK, y'all. And i mean you post Gumbo lurkers, if you are here just reading but not posting, please add your own musings. What's on your mind? what's the best thing that happened to you? What were you doing earlier today just before you decided to read this blog? What are you reading? what are you eating? what are you drinking? What really cool thing have you done lately that nobody knows about?
Listening to "Life on Mars" TV show...I love the 70s soundtrack
Drinking iced tea (it's Lent)
Favorite quote is one of my own "Spending to get out of debt is like drinking to get sober."
Best thing so far this week: I found a bottle of nailpolish that is a color I loved. My last bottle got broken in my luggage (fortunately in a ziplock, so I was lucky that day too.) Doesn't sound like much but it made me smile.
Worst thing this week: sitting in a freezing cold House conference room listening to blah blah blah for way too many hours.
1. Why is anyone surprised that Limbaugh is a jackass? This is news?And more importantly, why must he be seen as the representative for all people who are slightly right of Karl Marx? Life just ain't that simple.
2. I dearly wish sometimes that I could go back to the days when I was blissfully unaware of things political and didn't care what the stockmarket was doing because it was "only paper anyway and I wouldn't need it for decades."
3. Both those pictures are terrific. I drop in on Kylee's blog(s) now and again, but don't post because she doesn't know me.
4. Not reading much right now, cuz I'm not traveling. Just carrying aound Malcolm Gladwell's "Outliers" in case I get stuck waiting somewhere.
5. The new U2 CD is getting good reviews. I'll probably get it for Bud for his birthday -- he really likes U2 a lot.
6. Our visas for China came in today and I've started thinking wardrobe. Have to pack light for this one, but won't have formal evenings to consider so it should be fairly easy.
7. Would love to know what's behind your #12 but I'm too polite to ask.
8. Got a 7:30 breakfast meeting so must head off to bed.
Oh -- and I forgot! Lost was un-freaken-believable AGAIN tonight.
I'm getting more confident that the writers not only know where they are going with this, but they are determined to take us on one hella ride to get there.
I will admit that there have been times that I had my doubts, but wow.
I'm weary of everything. And unfortunately, many in my office love Rush. We finally had to put limit on how loud you could have your radio during his show...they blasted him like he was Motley Crue.
I've not like U2 in years. I was a die hard fan in the beginning.
I watched the Top Chef reunion last night...Stefan was robbed.
Ok, off to work to hear how I'm ruining the country...yes, me.
what surprises me about limbaugh is that ANYONE still takes him seriously.
i'll add more later. blogger is weird for me today. i can't see your photos and my blog won't load.
1. Limbaugh is more than an idiot - he's a moron with a microphone, and that makes him dangerous. He wouldn't know the truth if it bit him in the ass.
2. I've been lurking more than posting lately mostly because every time I've tried, the Blogger Bugs have eaten it. Ugh.
3. Good things: The weather got warm (after a high on Tuesday of 28 degrees). I've put a deposit on a puppy...I won't get her until end of June, and I get first pick of the litter. (yay)
4. Worst thing this week: watching the "staff" at the place I work not be able to handle kids like my son. They have the degrees, the fancy alphabet letters after their names, and yet, it takes the lowly secretary to point out that they're not setting simple limits. Makes me crazy.
5. I screwed up my checkbook. I've not done that in months, years. It just pisses me off. And in this day and age, and when money means so much more, I just lost a hundo. Dammit.
6. I think everything that happens lately is making many of us rethink our positions on tons of issues, work, friends, family, etc... Maybe it needed to be done at this point in our societal development.
7. Our local radio station is giving tickets to a secret U2 concert... I should try and win them.
8. Don't even consider dreads. My oldest (22) has them, and I'm not a fan. And btw, she still washes them. LOL I'm hoping she cuts them off soon.
9. I'm sorry you never got into Broken For You. I found it pretty awesome. It was a little funky in style, though. I will admit that.
11. My reading tastes are leaning towards mind-candy these days. I'm finishing an old Diane Mott Davidson (gotta love murder mystery and recipes, eh?) and picked up the latest Joanne Fluke mystery in paperback, and got a book that Empress of the Desert recommended...
12. glad ya posted!
KatKit, NOOOO, i LOVED "Broken for You" it's probably right there in my Top Ten. In fact i loaned it to someone and she never returned it. And i went out and bought another copy for myself because some books you just need to own. This is her new book and it is alittle slower to get into, but i'm not giving up yet.
I think dreads are cool, especially if they are tied back.
I do wonder what is going on with blogger these days. Lately it's been okay, but last week was bad.
eque and pearl. I love reading about Lost from y'all before i watch my DVR of it. We're gonna watch it tonight and i'm excited to find out there is more Sawyer, though i'm not sure how i feel about him connecting with Julia. She bugs the shit out of me.
pearl, you are so good with the Lent and giving up of the wine. What is it that i say? I think it's....'i give up Lent for Lent'.
susieatl, i sort of know what you mean about U2. They are a bit of a hit and miss with me. I LOVE the song "It's a Beautiful Day" but sometimes the jangly guitar sound grates on me in their other songs.
Ms Kylee/Modern Hippie, where are you? I thought you would get a kick out of your little girl photo.
test
I keep loosing my effing password. Is this showing up as me?
ahhh now i know why you wanted me to see it :) haha i love that picture of me and you on the mountain, i look like a little boy but i still love it i have it a framed in my apartment actually
i just tried to use one of those pictures to photoshop me with obama! it didnt work out though i gotta shop around for a better picture of myself and such.
ill write more later i got morning class tomorrow gotta get to sleep!!
Hi everyone, I have been on sabbatical, hiding out from emotional vampires and procrastinating on my taxes, which I am happy to report I finally completed. Now to figure out how blogger works again and where the heck MY blog went and how to post pics. Can I just say I miss the gumbo format where I knew how it all worked? It's been a year and I'm still trying to remember who has blogger, who is on live journal, who is on MySpace, Facebook, the porch, and various blogs. Then I realize it's been forever since I've checked in with anyone ANYWHERE and I feel this absolute anxiety to say something ultra intelligent and witty, and of course in THIS gang I'm just not going to trump anyone, so it's best just to be my neurotic self.
A) I've had the flu all week. I'm drinking my favorite cough syrup with Codeine. I wish I got sick more often, because it's the most pleasant buzz I've had in a long time.
1) Jo, Kylie looks so great!!! Good looks run in your family!
2) Is Ryan Adams the guy from the 80s rumored to have had the affair with Princess Diana? He must have done something new but I haven't heard it.
3) Limbaugh really shouldn't be allowed to speak.
4) I have 5 library books and can't focus to get into a one of them.
5) I'm considering forsaking my DVR to save money, but I can't remember now how the VCR works. Dilemma.
6) LOST rocks! I KNEW Sawyer would be with Juliet (3 years is a long time and I figured Charlotte was a goner) but now he and Kate will be even more star-crossed than they were. Oh well, this will add to the tension of their inevitable reunion. Why did Ben kill Locke? Why not just let him finish his suicide? Who are the new plane people again? Was the guy in the last episode getting drunk Ben's dad? The child Amy had couldn't have been Ben since his mom died giving birth and the date was 1974 (Ben is too old to have been born then) so I'm lost on who the newborn was. If it mattered. But it ALWAYS matters on LOST.I'm with Pearl - WOW!
7) I'm also loving Damages.
8) Kat, that's great that you are getting a puppy!
9) My best friend is considering taking a job in Spokane, which makes me sad.
10) I want to know what's behind Jo's #12 too.
11) I'm going to figure out how to kill the blue heron that's eating my fish and the government will never catch me. Unfortunately, they are quick-sighted and fast-reacting SOBs. I think if the rednecks around here can kill Bambi, I should be able to kill a damn bird that looks like a velociraptor and thinks my fish are kibble. I'm going to go all Elmer Fudd on his feathered ass and the EPA can kiss mine.
12) I have a low frustration tolerance lately, with birds and with people.
13) Pearl, you gave up wine for Lent? That's going to be a toughie! I know that's the whole point, though.
14) I've got to get to bed....sorry this was so disjointed and that I'm so bad at keeping up. I miss you guys!
Hugs,
Cat
Is there a way around this word verifying thing? Because I swear I'm going to go postal if there isn't. I type the right word and it doesn't take it, gives me another word, etc.....
OH, and back to LOST, anyone else think it was funny when Sawyer was asked by Amy how they got there and he said really fast, "we crashed on our way to Tahiti but that's not important now..." anyone else flash back to the old Airplane movies and Leslie Neilson? Oh, and did he give Juliet a nickname? If so, I missed it.
*Of all the names he could have picked, why "Le Fleur?" That's so cute but so UNSAWYER!
***How does Sawyer manage to stay so cute in a filthy t-shirt with 2-day stubble and dirty hair?
Curse you all for getting me hooked on that show.
Cat, good to see you back! Ryan Adams is SO not the dude you are thinking of (For one thing i don't even believe he is 30 years old yet.)
Kylee, i think you look just like a little boy too in that photo. I liked when you had your short haircut to go with your little pixie face when you were small.
I still haven't watched my Lost yet. I have Brian's family in town. We had to go to a baby shower today for his nephew's baby and anyone who knows me knows how much i H*A*T*E baby showers. And not only that we had to play GAMES! that made it even worse. And there was no wine in sight. To be fair, my sister in law offered to let me off the hook and say don't feel pressure to come. But if Brian's whole family was going to be there i am not THAT willing to be the black sheep.
So i bought the most adorable little jean jacket that is so cute and little and softly lined from Baby Gap. Some long sleeve little baby newborn one-sies or whatever the hell they are called from Baby Gap. AND i ordered her a "My First President" for a 6 month baby with Barack Obama's name and logo and the inauguration date. It's so little and adorable and really should be kept for historic purposes. (I found it on Cafe Press.com) Anyway she opened it and made a face and said, "Oh, i don't know about this."
(obviously, something i didn't know about her because i assumed since she worked in public schools that she was a Democrat.) Anyway i pointed out to her that it didn't say the baby VOTED for Obama or that the baby was even an Obama Baby that it just was historical.
But now i think i want that t-shirt back if she doesn't appreciate it.
grrr.
i belong to an email group of HR directors at work. it's a national group and there are probably a couple hundred people that get the emails. so someone asked a question about how we should be preparing for the enactment of the employee free choice act, which is going to be a problem for nonprofit retirement communities. so people were giving their suggestions about how to promote their union free messages.
so i replied. it was the day i was waiting for the wine to be delivered, so i had time and i did some research. i started my post with "While I support our President, I certainly disagree with him on this issue." Then I proceeded to encourage everyone to contact their senators and express opposition to the Act. I included links and cut and paste sample letters to the editor. i thought it was a very balanced and well thought out reply, and a couple of people replied and agreed.
so this administrator dude (an administrator being in the hr group means his nursing home is too small to have its own hr director, and it was a "christian" home, whatever that means) replies, "those are some very good suggestions, but i still can't figure out why you support the president."
walk away from the computer, barbara...
here's another one:
my good friend pat, the conservative, raises sheep (for eating lamb). they had a black one born a couple of weeks ago. a female. she said her husband said, "i wish it was a boy. we'd name it obama and then i could kill it in six months." seriously. he said that. OMG.
i think you should offer to babysit that girl's baby and take its picture in an obama shirt.
today the email group was still dickering about the union bill, and that guy that questioned me supporting the president sent another email.
backstory - a representative from the association that sponsors the listserv said that we shouldn't be union bashing and the organization is neither pro-union nor anti-union.
another guy replied "then shame on you!!!!!"
and another guy replied: "Everybody, stop. We can be professional about this topic. Tone and manner recently have been quite unseemly - and not helpful when viewed in a national public forum. Let's stay on target, and avoid the exclamation marks and bold fonts. Thanks."
a couple people replied and thanked him for saying that.
and the one who pissed me off last week wrote: "Way to be professional, like not singling out anyone like Dave W (the 'sham on you' guy), who just happened to use exclamation marks.
"When our national association, which should be leading the charge, is so out of touch and spineless that they think information is “counterproductive,” exclamation marks and bold fonts should be the least of their worries. Please explain to me how it’s counterproductive for us to be informed that the administration of the All-Merciful Lord Barack Obama is quietly promising to “fast-track” this abominable legislation!!!!!!!!!!"
he put "all merciful lord barack obama" in bold.
so I forwarded it to the person at the association that runs the email group and suggested he be banned.
ah, brings back memories of gumbo!
but seriously, if i had ever gone off on bush like that in a so-called professional forum, i would have been blasted as unpatriotic.
Oh crap, I lost my comment after writing a bunch of "what I think" and "what I've been doing." I have not idea what key I hit to make it all disappear.
So now I'll just say "Hi" to everybody, and tell Jojo that I'm glad to see her writing!
I'll be back . . .
OMG, Barbara, THAT does sound like Gumbo. The All Merciful Lord Barack Obama. LOL.... Way to get people to respect your differing opinion.
I am also wondering why your friend even told you what her husband said about the black sheep. How does one respond?
Hey Lynnie. I hope you DO try again. I have that same problem when posting sometimes.
Oh, I live in the world of the Obama-bashers, too, and it's all I can do to say "Give the guy a break; he's been in office for only 6 weeks!"
Barb, about that whole Employee Free Choice Act: I learned from Rachel Maddow tonight that there is nothing in that act that says that people must now have open ballots. It just gives a group the choice between secret and open ballots, rather than having ONLY secret ballots.
Since you seem to know a lot about this, is it true? And if it is, why would people be against it? Nothing has to change if a group doesn't want it to . . . So why do people feel threatened by it?
Now, about "Lost" ~~~ I didn't start watching it until the middle of last year, and I am now catching up by watching the new ones and reruns of other seasons on various cable channels. I am LOVING IT!
I want to know everybody's theories ~~~ coming to the "Lost" party late and wanting to pick your brains! LOL
Locke is the one who appeals to me (showing my age) ~~~ and so does Jin. I've always been attracted to Asian men (even though I've married two blond, blue-eyed guys!)
HI LYNNIE!!!!! Isn't LOST cool!
That is not accurate the way it was presented on Rachel Maddow. The way it is now, the union has to have at least 30% of the proposed bargaining unit sign authorization cards. These are done in a campaign, usually without the employer's knowledge, calling people at home, and giving the union's side of why the employee should have a union.
If they get their 30% (actually they don't usually even bother if the don't have more than 50%), the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) authorizes a secret ballot election. Then the employer is informed and has an opportunity to respond. We would say things like, what will the union do for the dues that you pay? and why do you need a third party to speak for you?
I think the right to organize is important because there was a time in our history that employers took advantage of workers. The existence of this law keeps employers honest in dealing with employees. My outlook as an HR Director is the core principles of organized labor are right principles: fair wages, safety, good working conditions. All of these things are good business. If you treat your employees right, they will treat your customers right.
The key change with the EFCA is that if the union gets more than 50% of the cards signed, the NLRB can just authorize the union without giving the employer the chance to respond, without giving employees the right to vote in private. Before secret ballot elections, there were incidents where the unions strong-armed and intimidated and misled employees into signing the cards.
Also, a contract can be determined by 3rd party arbitration, usually people who know nothing about our business.
The effect of having a union in a non-profit nursing home would be economically devastating to our business.
But back to that nasty nasty man. I am so disheartened by the anger and nastiness that I see. The right wing is so angry. I supported Obama because I beleived he could bring people together. I know it hasn't been very long. But how can you bring people together who don't want to come together?
You're right eque. You can't bring people together who don't want to come together. And right now may not be the time anyway. For one thing i don't see how a union can go on strike when the unemployment lines are what they are. Too many people would be willing to cross a picket line because it's a mean of survival in these times.
Despite my #6 i do believe in unions where they are needed. I know firsthand how much better things are for employees in the classified ranks in the district where i helped get the union started in 1985. The union was not successful in 1980 when they first attempted and in my opinion the district had 5 years to do better by the employees and didn't. So the employees organized. And we made a pretty good case of it at the time.
I don't believe every place of employment needs a union. For example Starbucks appears to treat its employees well, or at least it has in the past. And i find myself often siding with the management position as often as I do the union member's position.
My issue with them now is that unions seem to celebrate mediocrity in the workplace and that pisses me off. You have to be pretty freaking horrible before you can be fired.
And right now with the job market being what it is i see people who i know could be replaced with better workers and better attitudes and you wish it was that easy.
On the other side of that debate, if you hired better administrators who knew how to hire employees and if you hired better administrators who knew how to take the time to fire an employee (or at the very least not pass them through the probation period) there would be no need for unions.
So if your HR department is one who cares about their employees and who hires good supervisors who know how to weed out the bad ones quickly during their probation and who also know how to document when an employee is not successful or needs improvement, then there should be no reason for employees uprising.
...in conclusion, while i know they can and do work in situations where it's intolerable, I just don't think this is the time for unions to consider organizing. I can't envision where a new union will get their power in today's economy. and i believe a weak union is worse than none at all. It's too divisive.
I watched a hearing on the state bill for card check and some of the testimony had my head spinning. Favorite comment: When asked about what this bill could do to the really small employer (if 1 employee can talk two others into signing the card, the 5 employee shop has to forever collective bargain every little thing) -- the response from one of the union reps: "we wouldn't bother with a business that small". Hmmmmm.
This is one issue where I really cant get involved. I see the value in unions -- especially when they first arose. But I also see what happens when it becomes all about the power and not about the business. Eastern Airlines comes to mind...collectively bargained themselves right onto the street and took the airline down with them.
We cann ill afford that in the current environment.
eque...I'd have to put that idiot with the sheep on permanent ignore. But I also remember some of the vile and horrific things said about Obama's predicessor -- the "Former Occupant" and how all joined in heartily.
The brouhaha a couple of weeks ago about the monkey cartoon immediately reminded me of the photo of the Bush-as-chimp that some on Gumbo actually used as an avatar and most thought it just brilliantly clever. I just thought it was childish and disrespectful of the office.
I voted for "Current Occupant" and am already beginning to regret that decision. Yes, he has been in office less than 60 days, Lynnie, but what appears to me is that he is trying to overturn as many of the previous administration's policies as fast as possible, without regard to or consideration for whether they might, in fact, be good ones.
That's may be how one swiftly makes good on campaign obligations, but it is certainly NOT how one builds coalitions.
And I don't blame him personally for all of it. He's pretty much a puppet of the party and is carrying out their agenda. Change my fluffy pink butt.
I'm just glad to see a few Dems with the spine to oppose the juggernaut on the pork platter called the 09 budget.
I'd like to see more thought behind the decision making -- and examples like the sheer volume of nominees that have had to drop out because of practically criminal background incidents haven't shown me much hope.
I'm still reeling from having been given a Treasury Secretary (in the middle of the WORST fiscal crisis in history) who is a tax cheat. "Not properly vetted" is an understatement -- yet approved for the position in spite of his history. Kinda makes the whole Sarah Palin thing pale in comparison.
I hope that once the first rush of power dissipates (if it does) CO will be able to earn the vote that I cast.
'Cause I've never been quite this disappointed this early in the game.
Not being a true conservative, I felt compelled to at least represent the middle.
;-)
I think you represent it pretty well, pearl. I agree BO is fast-tracking too much and that's hurting the coming togther process. But I still believe in where he's coming from.
And I think all of us are on the same page when it comes to unions. I try to run our human resources the way you described, jo. Sometimes it's easier said than done! But I think most of our employees trust that we have the right intentions.
As W said, "It's hard work!" :-)
Hi everybody! I'm reading and I suppose lurking, just too tired to comment. However, I find it quite refreshing to read here and do NOT miss the gumbo broo-has that would certainly follow if the place were still alive.
I'm happy to be allowed in the company of such intelligent and fine writing!
:)
ps to Cat -
lmao - girl how much of that cough syrup are you drinking that you keep getting the password word wrong?? you crack me up!!
Yay, Grits is here. I'm just happy when my blog hits 25 comments. So i wanted to add one more. I don't have much more to say about unions and stuff except that i too am glad it's not a Gumbofest. I'm also not one of the union folks who are mad a Obama for his plan. Though i always have the question: Who determines who gets merit pay? AND most importantly, what is the criteria that determines who is worthy.
I support the President probably for much of what he has been undoing of the Bushshit and fully support the lifting the stem cell restrictions. Go O!
If I thought for a minute that any of this was being done for any real purpose beyond sticking it to the right, I could maybe get behind a proposal or two.
But after listening to all the diatribe of the last 8 years, I know that it's all destroying and nothing about creating. Business as usual.
As Pe-lousy put it so eloquently "We won the election - we wrote the bill."
( http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123310466514522309.html )
And I know who will have to pay the bill.
Since I'll see none of the "benefits" of this new socialism, as I unwillingly pick up the tab for it, I'll continue to disagree.
pearl, i disagree with how you view what Obama is doing .
If Obama is willing to put himself in front of unions and disagree with them about charter schools and merit pay, for example, I don't see that as 'sticking it to the right' or being a 'puppet for the party'. So when i read what you write, it doesn't sound "middle" to me.
That's the first time he's said or done anything even remotely off message. And he just did it yesterday.
I'm not sure it wasn't done/timed that way to take the edge off this mammoth bag of earmarks he's getting ready to put pen to.
Besides he's an advocate of card check, so I'm pretty sure they won't be too upset for too long.
And it's not just CO...it's Camp Runamok in Congress now.
I realize that from where you sit, my 'middle' is pretty far to the right, but I assure you that where I sit is still quite a distance from the truly conservative end of the bench. But as this all plays out, I may get pushed in that general direction.
I hope I'm wrong.
Thanks, Barb, for your detailed explanation. I like Rachel Maddow more than most other TV news talking-heads-type people, so it was good to find out more about the issue than she presented.
I tend to look at things from a 'management viewpoint' because my Dad was management. And the company that he worked for never did vote in a union, because they were treated so well by the folks that ran the company, my Dad included. It always pleased him that his workers trusted him enough to not 'go union.'
But as the teacher that I once was, I can remember how necessary it was for the association to step in sometimes when administrators 'got personal' and acted unfairly toward certain employees (the local version of IEA/NEA ~~~ not really a union in their eyes, but a union-like organization.)
So I'm fence-sitting on this union issue.
About Obama: I feel that he is very intelligent and thoughtful (as in: he thinks things through.) I like his calm demeanor. I don't see him as being impulsive, but then there is the whole Democratic Party to consider, and I'm not as happy with them as I had hoped to be. And I agree that some of his cabinet choices have been questionable.
As someone who was raised in a town where the newspaper is called "The Bureau County Republican" ~~~ I've got to admit that the present-day Republican Party is not the same as the Party that I grew up with. Even my Mom and Dad (Chicago Democrats who moved to that same small town in 1950 and decided to become Republicans) are terribly disappointed in the Party that they have supported for 59 years. They both voted for Obama ~~~ you could have knocked me over with a feather when they told me!
It's lovely to find some of my favorite people here ~~~ folks who can discuss without getting all Gumbo-like!
pearl, Obama supported charter schools and merit pay BEFORE he was elected, not just yesterday.
And i applaud Obama on taking this risk of setting his education plan out there knowing the unions will very likely disagree and get mad.
I too side with Obama on charter schools and feel that unions are guarding their own self-interests there. And i like that Obama is looking at merit pay for teachers in a way that isn't about student test scores.
So oddly enough, for me with 25 years of union activism, i was glad that he was not cowtowing to them in spite of the unions helping to elect him. (I hope my employers don't read my blog! LOL.)
So sometimes i feel like i'm in the middle too, though i doubt most folks wouldn't see me that way. I guess where my emotional view is is that it seems to me you have spoken more often already about being disappointed in Obama than it feel that you ever did in the 8 years of Bush. But i realize that might be my own view because for me, at this point, it's like having someone say something bad about your own family.
The thing is I believe when schools are good, we all "benefit". And I also believe that even though i already have health insurance, making sure that we provide insurance for more of our population is also a benefit to us all.
I guess I am just so happy to have a president who is not focusing on the "Haves Mores”.
I do agree with the anti-Pelosi sentiment. I wish she was replaced.
Disclaimer: while i support charter schools i do not think it is fair to compare student test scores to public schools scores.
(Public schools of course, don't have the luxury of the charter schools admittance policies, including the promised parental support.)
Hey Lynnie!
Sadly enough i don't think the schools will get to the point where they won't need a union. Maybe if they paid the administrators more money too. Your Dad should be proud that his company didn't "go union".
Changing the subject to report what I'm doing today:
Mr. Lynnie (Steve) called in sick today, so since he stayed home, I didn't go bowling with the gals.
I didn't go to my Tuesday morning league yesterday, either, because I had to go to the dentist. Apparently, one of my fillings fell out, so I had to have 2 done instead of 1 on the left side. At the end of the month I have to have 3 replaced on the right side; they are not new cavities; just really old fillings that are cracking and crumbling. My jaw really hurts today from having my mouth open for so long. I really hate going to the dentist.
We just finished watching "The Blues Brothers" on cable. We love that movie because it is so CHICAGO; the scene where they drive through the shopping mall and break everything up used to be Dixie Square, and I used to shop there in the '70s before it was abandoned ~~~ and then rebuilt just for the movie.
I love the dancing that Belushi and Ackroyd do while they're performing "Sweet Home Chicago" ~~~ it cracks me up every time I see it.
I am drinking Uncle Lee's Legends of China Organic White Tea right now. Low caffeine, high in antioxidants. I drank too many Vodka & Tonics last night, trying to kill the dental pain after the novocaine (sp?) wore off.
The AT&T man just came, so I'm sending Steve out to talk to him. I have had to report our phone not working about 4 times in the past week. It's weird that we have no dial tone, but I can still use my computer (we're on DSL.)
"Lost" is on tonight. YAY! We missed watching a rerun on the SciFi channel this afternoon ~~~ just saw the tail end of it after "Blues Brothers."
I love it when Steve stays home from work. We sleep in and watch TV all day and laugh a lot . . .
That's about it. Exciting, huh?
I just noticed that I use the word "really" much more than necessary. I really need to do something about that . . . *snorty*
The problem with us 'have mores' is that so many of us actually earned it through hard work and perserverence.
And, as a result, we're cursed with this persistent notion that we actually deserve to have (and by extension, to use as we see fit) what we have worked for.
I'm a bit bitter at the moment because I'm being taxed to death by both state and feds.
We already donate a lot to a wide and varied number of charities. I just don't like having someone else choose my charities for me.
I keep thinking about the 'octomom.' Here's a woman with 6 kids (6!!) already, who by all accounts used the money from a WC claim settlement to pay to have 6 more embryos implanted through in vitro, resulting in the octuplets. Fourteen children. No job. Massive medical bills. Paid for by????
She's certainly (please, God?) the exception, but the exception that proves the rule. The system's broken.
So what's the solution? Pour more money into the seive? Or fix it?
You already know the right answer. But it's not the path being pursued.
I have shared with you my disappointment in Bush many times.
I'm just more disappointed with Obama right now because I fell for his line -- Change! Hope!! Then when he gets in, he's exactly what my gut told me to expect.
Reminiscent of an abusive ex or two in my acquantance.
So perhaps my disappointment is better directed at myself for continuing to be so bloody gullible, and at my age.
And I'm not insinuating that anyone else is gullible. You knew what you wanted and voted for it. I knew what I didn't want and hoped that this one would be different. So far, not so much.
And there certainly is change. Just not the change I was hoping for.
Are you watching AI at all this season? CMG is blogging it (she's themindwobbles at blogspot)
pearl, i totally got you about the gullible. I knew what you meant. Ok, i like the idea of changing the subject to American Idol. funny thing was i just thought of this a week or so ago. It's probably no accident whatsoever that when our state's legislature is in session that it last about as long as the American Idol season.
I just got home a little bit ago from one of our legislative session dinners at the union office. The news out of the session is of course brutal and we're having these meetings with members every two weeks. We serve egg rolls. That's how we get them to show up. But it's a lot of work for me to organize.
Anyway, back to Idol. I do not like this season and yet i cannot stop watching. But i don't feel the mojo to blog or bore non-Idol watchers about it. I will say this. There is a rocker guy - with dyed black hair and a sort of Elvis look to him (maybe because of the hair) but he's so good. His name is Adam Lambert.
Here is the YouTube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiakWlnxqhg
He is singing Michael Jackson. Scroll over to one minute to miss the hype.
This is a Stone song: Satisfaction
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sqG43VZY2M
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