Two more sleeps

Jeff Barclay photo

I was wondering whether the Skagit Valley daffodils are coming up yet, and I found this picture on the Seeing Bellingham Group on Facebook. Jeff is a constant contributor to the site, and I have always enjoyed seeing his delightful pictures. The dark skies and brightly lit daffodils are incredible, don't you think? I know this spot because I always see it when I visit the tulips in April. This was taken three days ago, and I am so happy to see this scene. I am already looking forward to this year's Tulip Festival in the Skagit Valley. I suspect it will be a moderately average time for the blooms to show up. It's still too early for tulips.com to venture a guess.

It's just two more days before we experience the first day of spring. And I also suspect we won't have much more cold weather, although that's definitely not a given. I remember one year after we moved here when we had a foot of snow right here in town in April. It was almost like I hadn't left Colorado behind! That said, I don't think we will have a repeat performance of lowland snow this year. We already had a month of below-normal temperatures, but next week the forecast is for above average temperatures.

I am trying not to get too freaked out over the Social Security fiasco that is apparently emerging from Washington, DC. We are completely dependent on getting our checks deposited into our accounts each month, something that has happened without a hitch since we retired almost two decades ago. But now, who knows what will happen? They are cutting staff and closing offices all across the country. And I know we are not alone in needing our SS to keep on coming regularly. I am hoping that saner heads will prevail before it's too late to fix it. Sorry to bring this up, but I am puzzled and mystified by this and wonder if anything is safe anymore.

:-(

Sunflowers and tears

One of my summer sunnies

I just learned that Ukraine's national flower is the beautiful sunflower, so I went looking through my pictures and found this one. And between getting the latest news from the TV and occasionally bursting into tears, I am also very happy to learn how the international community has come together to protest Putin's invasion of Ukraine. If you want to be inspired (and it also might bring a tear or two to your eyes as well), you can check out this article in The Atlantic.

I tend to take my freedom for granted, because I've always had it. It's only been the last several years that I've wondered if America will make it intact through this scary and unsettled time in the history of the world. Yes, we have been here before; it's the nature of things to change and evolve, and politics and national borders don't hold still. But never before did I think the turmoil might actually reach our shores during my lifetime. Figuring that being old means I would probably be on the other side of the grass before the sh*t hits the fan (what a graphic image that is, eh?), well... I may get a chance to experience what it means not to be able to speak out. In Russia right now, there are plenty of people in that situation, and they are not that different from me.

I would like to give a shout out to the Lion of Kyiv: Volodymyr Zelensky. He not only is leading by example, refusing to leave when his country is under attack, but also showing how a much stronger and better armed foe can be, if not defeated, at least held off. The rest of the world is watching this amazing person stand up to tyranny. It does make me wonder if we have anybody with that kind of grit in our own political theater. Surely we must, surely. There are more courageous leaders today because of the example he has shown to the world.

If we come under attack, if we face an attempt to take away our country, our freedom, our lives and the lives of our children, we will defend ourselves. When you attack us, you will see our faces. Not our backs, but our faces. —Volodymyr Zelensky

:-}

Hot and harrowing times

Our lovely trail today

Because of the heat advisories all up and down the west coast today, all Senior Trailblazer groups called off scheduled trips to the High Country out of caution about old people overheating. One group went off to Whidbey Island to be near the water, and another group decided (I think) to climb Mt. Erie, inland but shady and hopefully not too hot.

Melanie and I decided to stay local and headed off an hour earlier than usual to the Hertz trail, a nice three-mile-long flat trail along Lake Whatcom. When we started out, it was quite cool and very comfortable as we made our way to the end of the trail, thinking we might beat the heat and be done early. I was really surprised by the amount of smoke in the air.

Lots of haze

I suppose if you thought the grey skies were caused by fog, it might not seem to be all that unwelcome. But we knew that the haze is caused by smoke from fires. The orange sky that greeted me when I walked outside at sunrise was my first clue. It might keep the worst of the heat down a bit, I thought.

 They climbed the tree over and over

We watched these two young men climb up this old tree and jump into the water multiple times. They were having a great time and told us the water was just fine! They had ridden their Jet Skis over to the area and eventually took off for other adventures. 

Canadian geese keeping cool

Then we saw these geese looking pretty in the water as we made our way back the way we had come. It was still quite cool and comfortable as we walked back to the parking lot, but the sun had come out and the temperature had risen by about twenty degrees Fahrenheit. It wasn't until we reached the parking lot that we got a blast of hot wind in our faces. Yes, we had made the best choice by walking our six miles in relative comfort.

Arriving back home, I walked into the living room to see SG glued to the TV, watching the latest news about the surge of troops being sent to Afghanistan, since apparently the capital city is in danger of being overrun at any time. This is terrible news, and I fear not only for the Americans in danger, but also all the Afghani citizens who are facing certain disaster. 

I completely forgot about the gentle forest I just left behind and am now in mental turmoil about the situation unfolding across the world. I am sending positive thoughts to all who are suffering and wishing for the best possible outcome.

:-(

That's so far out

 

Astronomy Picture of the Day

I am a daily fan of the Astronomy Picture of the Day and saw this one on June 28 when I marveled over it. If you go to the link under the picture, you can learn about how it was taken, and what you are looking at. Of course that's the Great Red Spot in the middle of the picture, but in the lower left you are seeing one of Jupiter's moons: Europa. And in the upper right is the shadow of Io, another of Jupiter's moons. 

I have been fascinated with the closeups of Jupiter that have emerged from the Voyager 2 journey that began in 1979. And yes, there is also a Voyager 1 out there. Both of them will not return to Earth but will transmit data back to Earth for a long time to come.

Voyager 2 is near the edge of our solar system and will one day also enter interstellar space. Many people are unaware that even after over 40 years, both probes are still actively generating scientific data and transmitting it to Earth.

 Sometimes I get a real burst of energy from seeing such incredible views of our Solar System, knowing that the ups and downs of our earthly travails are small in the larger scheme of things. Not that it makes it any easier, but it just gives us a chance to step back and ponder such majesty.

If you have some techniques for staying sane while the world around us grows ever more chaotic, I'd love to hear about them. Until then, I'll keep my head in the clouds and beyond.

:-)

The Supremes in June

A rainbow of flamingos

Spoiler Alert: I am going to venture into a minefield of political musings, something I rarely, if ever, do on my blog. But this has been quite a month of incredible rulings made by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS). It started off in the middle of the month with a ruling that makes it illegal to fire someone because of being gay or transgender. Not only that, but the argument supporting the ruling was written by Neil Gorsuch, a conservative. (Read this CNN Opinion article about it.)

And then SCOTUS disallowed the Administration from throwing out DACA (Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals) as currently written. But it held out hope for the administration to fix it and then re-submit it, which would then allow for the immediate deportation of all 7 million DACA recipients. (Article from The Hill about this one.) For now, though, they are safe from deportation.

And, today, SCOTUS ruled that Louisiana's abortion law is unconstitutional. They pointed out that many hospitals in the region are religiously affiliated or conservative and don't allow abortions to take place in their facilities in any event, which severely limits the number of doctors who can carry out the procedure.

The law required that doctors providing abortions have admitting privileges to nearby hospitals, which the justices said led to an undue burden on women. Chief Justice John Roberts joined liberal justices in the 5-4 decision in a blow to anti-abortion groups. The court struck down a similar policy in Texas in 2016, the opinion noted.

There is one more bombshell ruling still to come, and that is whether or not Congress has a right to get ahold of Trump's tax returns. Although it seems to be mostly related to our current president, it will also establish the boundaries between the executive branch and Congress that are not at all clear at the present time.

The court is expected to determine the scope of congressional power to issue subpoenas in furtherance of its legislative function, and whether the President has "absolute immunity" from even being investigated criminally while in office. 

I'm not sure when this ruling will be given, but I am hoping it will show that we voters should definitely be given that information. But hey, three out of four isn't bad. I know I may be upsetting some of my long-time readers with this post, but I simply couldn't resist writing this after today's ruling.
:-)

Peeking inside their homes

Nice kitchen

It's been so interesting to see the homes of the people I usually see in studio settings, and they all tell a different story of who they are. Claire McCaskill is always in her kitchen, and I noticed right away that all her plates seem to be homemade, not stacking up perfectly, and that there's no way to keep these dishes from getting dusty. Makes for plenty of work for somebody; I wonder if she has a housekeeper. Probably. If you look online, you can see the rest of her lovely kitchen, but this is where she always stands for the camera.

I noticed my guy standing close to the TV one day, with his head cocked to one side. He was reading, or trying to read, the titles of the books on shelves behind some anchor or another. Then I started looking myself. This guy, a Princeton scholar, rearranges his books periodically, so I realize he knows there are lots of people like me who are interested in what people are reading.

Eddie Glaude at home

The other thing that interests me are the number of people I admire who have pets. I got hooked on looking for the cat in William Brangham's home. The black cat is almost always in the same place on the couch, so when I noticed he was gone one day, I realized how much I missed seeing him. And often meteorologists working from home have dogs that ham it up in front of the camera, which always gives me a chance to smile.

Peeking into the homes of media celebrities has become a "thing." It's more fun than listening to the news, for sure!
:-)

Celestial painting

Astronomy Picture of the Day 4/7/2018

I was simply captivated by this Astronomy Picture of the Day on Saturday. I've always loved the way Jupiter's massive storms look in pictures, but this one is a closeup of Jupiter taken last December by the spacecraft orbiting the planet. It's been doctored a little:

The creative image uses actual data from the Juno spacecraft's JunoCam. To paint on the digital canvas, an image with light and dark tones was chosen for processing and an oil-painting software filter applied.

Isn't it beautiful? I look at APOD every day. It gives me a chance to gain a little perspective when things seem depressing and weird down here on Planet Earth. These days, I'm not sleeping all that well if I read the news before I go to bed. So, I'm trying to take a longer view of things, like gazing at our solar system's lovely Jovian giant.
:-}

Looking for distractions

Big red tomato, more to come soon

I am trying to distract myself from the news, which just continues to upset me whenever I turn it on, or get a notice on my iPhone. It's hard for me to disconnect, but for my own sanity I need to. So, let's turn instead to the wonderful things happening in my neck of the woods, shall we?

First of all, I'm beginning to get fabulous tomatoes out of my garden. As I've said before, my little cherry tomatoes don't get much of a chance to even get all the way ripe, because I munch on them while watering and weeding. But look at that pretty red tomato! I just picked it yesterday and put it in the window so it might get a little riper, but it's not going to last long. Like tonight for dinner, even. I can hardly wait to bite into it, knowing I have plenty more to come.

And our air is finally clear again, with perfect temperatures and a delightful hike in the future, although I don't know where we will go or who will lead it. Al is bowing out for at least another week, and I'm not willing to step up, hoping that someone else will. I'll be there on Thursday, though, since the temperatures should be around 70°F (20C) with partly cloudy skies. We are back to our normally scheduled weather, and it sure feels good to me!

It's easy to concentrate on bad news, but it's also not necessary. I've got plenty of good books to read (right now I'm reading three, all of which make me smile), lots to watch on Netflix or Amazon (which also don't have commercials or politics unless I choose to, which I don't). Here's where SG was yesterday, admiring the view from our front porch.

A cup of tea with a view

Odds and ends

John and Bernie at Avellino's

At the Farmers' Market on Saturday, I bought this Bernie Sanders cookie so that I could present it to John on Monday. John is an avid Bernie supporter and I knew that he would appreciate it. Sure enough: he won't even eat Bernie until after he's conceded to Hillary. It might be stale by then. John doesn't look like the usual millennial youngster that Bernie attracts, does he? Just goes to show that you can never judge a book by its cover.

First zucchine blossom

And look! I spied a first blossom on my zucchini plant yesterday when I went out in the morning to water. I smiled when I saw it and was reminded that a few years ago, when I saw that flower and the next day it was gone, I was dismayed, thinking that something had eaten it. And then slowly it dawned on me that the flower is the first stage of the zucchini itself! Boy, was I surprised. And now I'm an old hand and mentally translated this blossom into a zucchini by this time next week.

A few of my blogging friends have asked me about the name of the county in which I live, Whatcom. I remember wondering that myself, long ago, so this morning at the coffee shop I asked John and Gene if they knew the origin of the name. They didn't, so I looked it up (the link above). And I learned that its name ultimately derives from the Lummi word Xwotʼqom, meaning "noisy water."

A nearby table was occupied by a man who was busy grading papers. I learned that he is a professor of river ecology at Western Washington University and asked him if he knew the origin of the word. He smiled and told me yes; in fact, it's the bonus question on the papers he was grading at that moment! What are the odds of that happening?

Odds and ends: it seemed like an appropriate title for today's post. While writing this, I thought about the oddity above and the ending of this phase of the political scene. Even more appropriate.
:-)

My first Washington state caucus

My caucus location

This morning I only made one trip around the lake with the ladies, since I didn't want to be late to the Democratic Caucus, my precinct location being at the local middle school. When I walked in, early, parking was still available but within a very short period of time there were people streaming in who had no place to park. Once during the meeting an announcement was made to plead with those who parked in the convalescent home across the street to move their cars.

I was very interested in the process, but I left after the first tally. We had, just in our little precinct, 134 for Bernie and 11 for Hillary. I saw Bernie stickers everywhere, but none for Hillary. It's actually an interesting phenomenon to have TWO good candidates to choose from, and I would happily vote for either one. I've been feeling the Bern lately myself. There, I said it. That's the most politics you'll get from me, though.

Today my friend Judy and I are going to see that new movie that Sally Field is in, Hello, My Name is Doris. We saw the previews and decided it looked like it would be fun. It's billed as a comedy, but we'll see if we think it's funny. It will be a good way to spend the rest of the day; today is known as Holy Saturday, between Good Friday and Easter. I'd better find some chocolate for tomorrow; I never deprive myself on Easter!
:-)

Rainy Saturday

Lynn's crocus beginning to emerge

I woke last night to the sound of immense rainstorms pounding on our roof. I learned we had more than a half-inch total rainfall yesterday, but most of the day was sunny, meaning it really did pour last night. It was pretty amazing to hear it. We usually get light but persistent rain, nothing like last night's deluge.

Two things of importance have happened so far today: I just got home from seeing Michael Moore's new movie, called Where To Invade Next?. I've seen most of his movies, and I have to say that this one is probably one of the most hopeful and moving that I've seen. He's older now and has learned from his past mistakes. I would recommend anybody to see it, no matter what your political stripe.

And just a few minutes ago, I see that Antonin Scalia has died. This is a huge event in our country's history. He was a staunch conservative, but a good friend of someone I really admire: Ruth Bader Ginsberg. He had a wicked sense of humor, according to his admirers. The pundits are now arguing whether or not Obama will have a chance to appoint a successor. A day I won't forget any time soon.
:-{

Those pesky fruit flies

Where's my beach towel?

We have been inundated with those pesky little fruit flies that are coming from somewhere in our new kitchen. We never had any of these before, so I'm wondering if it could be our compost bin. We started keeping one in the kitchen after we got a composter for the community garden. Whatever the reason, one of my blogging friends, Kay over at Musings, put a tip in a blog post a while back about how to deal with these little buggers. You just put a little apple cider vinegar into a container and put a drop of dish soap in. It works like a charm! The flies are attracted to the smell, dive in and promptly drown, since the dish soap breaks the surface tension of the vinegar.

What you can't see in the picture is that there are plenty of dead flies in the bottom of the container, but why aren't these guys climbing in? Did one of them see George down there on the bottom and put out the alarm to the others? I've noticed that they do seem reluctant to take the plunge, so to speak. But they sure do like that smell. Maybe the trick is to use something glass instead of metal.

I did find this on line, a humane way to catch fruit flies without killing them and giving me a method to catch and release them outside. I don't like to kill things like spiders, but I have a really hard time feeling bad about those little fruit flies drowning. Am I being callous?

My friend Judy and I are going to see the documentary called Searching for Sugar Man today at the Pickford. I'll let you know whether we give it a Thumbs Up. It won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, among others, for the best international documentary, so it must be pretty good. The story is of a musician named Rodriguez (Sugar Man) who became a legend in South Africa because of his music, but no one else had heard of him.

I have one more thing to remind you: please vote, whichever party and whoever you vote for. The privilege of voting is nothing to be taken lightly, and many people around the globe would give anything to have a chance to do so. Here in Washington State, we vote by mail, so my job is done!
:-)

Dangerous job as a maid

J Lo as maid

I have worked as a maid at various times in my life, out of necessity. Once when I arrived in a city with no money, I got a job making $2 an hour cleaning hotel rooms. And long ago when I first came to Colorado, I worked as a maid at a dude ranch cleaning rooms for the summer.

What has brought all this back to me is identifying with the poor young woman who was allegedly raped by Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the disgraced and deposed IMF Chief. The other night I woke up thinking about the awful scenario she experienced that was so graphically depicted in news accounts. If she had known what was going to happen to her, I suspect she would have said nothing and endured the horror of it for the rest of her life. Her previous existence, and that of her sixteen-year-old daughter, will never be the same. The press will never leave her alone.

I read that when she tried to return home after the story broke, dozens of reporters blocked her way into her own home. She and her daughter have been "relocated" to a secure place, but how can her life ever be the same? She has agreed to press charges and probably has little to no idea of the pressures she will most likely face once the trial begins. It just makes me sick. The only bright side to what might come from this is highlighting the numerous times this same situation has happened to other young women, who have little to no recourse if something similar happens to them.

Most of the press reports I've read focus on what will likely happen to his life after he was caught. But apparently this is not new behavior for him, since he is a powerful person who thought the rules didn't apply to him. Whatever he gets won't be adequate punishment, in my opinion, because of his disregard for the rights of others. He joins the ranks of men who have been disgraced because of their inability to keep it in their pants and exposed, so to speak, for their crimes.

While I was working as a maid, I was never accosted, but I didn't spend more than a few months in the position. Because I had other skills, I was able to get better paying and more secure positions. However, I well remember how invisible I was to the people as they were checking out of their rooms. Many times I felt like a piece of furniture and was told by management that it was my place to act like one. Maybe those old guys like DSK should get a blow-up doll fastened to their pillows instead of a chocolate. But who knows, maybe the turn-on for him was overpowering an unwilling and powerless woman...
:-[

My kooky brother-in-law

I've been thinking quite often these days about my brother-in-law, Pete, Norma Jean's husband for almost five decades. Don't ask me why these pictures kept intruding into my consciousness, but I remembered he had sent me this series of three pictures sometime in 1985. They made laugh then, and they make me smile with fondness now. He died on February 10, 2011, just a few days past his 67th birthday. He wrote a post about his final birthday here.

Pete finally decided to start a blog in early September 2010, after having spent a vacation with his daughter Allison, who was promoted to Lt. Colonel in the Army and who also gave birth to a beautiful daughter in June of the same year (and is raising alone). After having been badgered about it from all sides, he didn't actually say he would do it, but he left the door open. He ended up writing more than a hundred posts before the end.

I was visiting Allison also, as her guest, along with my sister Norma Jean. The five of us, counting Lexie, or the seven of us if you also count the two dogs, Lou and Moose, all gathered in Alexandria, Virginia, last August for the ceremony to celebrate Allison's achievement. It meant a lot to Pete, and it is the subject of his first blog post, which you can read here. Pete was a gifted writer, and since he's been on my mind lately, I hunted down those three pictures and scanned them for this post. I think he is probably having a laugh himself; if there is a heaven, he's there.

Pete was not a perfect person, but then again, who is? We sometimes engaged in enthusiastic arguments. I enjoyed many things about him, not the least of which was his intellectual curiosity.  Sometimes I think that those who are intellectually gifted have a particularly hard time fitting their square pegs into the round hole of society. During those three weeks I spent in Florida with Norma Jean, she shared a piece of his writing with me that is dated 1/20/85 (about the same time those pictures were taken), and he entitled it "To My Children: A Layman's Guide to Living, or 'Life Isn't Fair, Allison'." It is in outline form, listing 11 different categories: Friends; Work and career; The Cosmos (universe); Family; Education; History; Politics; Everyday living; Religion; Self; and Your future society. I'd like to share with you that last category, as he wrote it.

1. Accept concept United States is no longer power it once was
• United States, as we know it, will probably not exist in far future
2. Global society -- we're no longer self sufficient
3. Fear a new wave of conservatism and repression
4. United States economy too increasingly dependent upon non-essentials
• Recreation and leisure-centered economy
• Information services replacing goods and products that are basic needs
5. Will see increasing separation of classes
• Believe there will be a political revolution
• Increasing separation of affluent/educated and the lower classes
6. Outer space will be place of future, predicting now:
• Global warning systems, civilian visits to space, colony to moon
• Space will likely be the primary battleground of the future

He wrote all this in January 1985!!! The guy was not only prescient in many ways, but I truly hope that some of the things he predicted will not come to pass. However, many of the things he wrote have definitely come true today, with no hint back in 1985 (to me, anyway) that the United States would be like it is at this juncture. He saw it, though. It seems quite clear to me that Pete was someone I am proud to have known, proud that he was part of my life, and I wish we could talk together about all this.

He was not a believer, but I am. If I am right, we will have that conversation someday (somewhen?). 
:-}

Accentuate the positive

Saul Loeb, AFP, from msnbc

There was an old song that Bing Crosby, I think, sang back in the old days when I was young. It was called something like "Don't Mess With Mr. In-Between." (The link takes you to the lyrics, if you want to see them.)

Elizabeth Edwards knew how to accentuate the positive in her life. She had some very public trials that many of us watched her go through. I was always struck by the grace with which she faced adversity. Everyone has trials, but she had more than her share, I would say, and now she is gone at the young age of 61, leaving behind two children who are not yet teenagers.

Elizabeth also fought for health care for everyone, she never gave up. And that is one reason for this post today: to say thank you to Elizabeth and all the others who wouldn't give in to the political drama that said it couldn't be done. While it's not perfect, at least the door is open. I am glad for that.

But other than thanking Elizabeth, I have also spent the morning sending emails to anyone who I think might actually be listening. The tax break "compromise" that Obama has crafted is blowing up in his face, because the only ones who love it are those who will be reaping the benefits. Read this post called "Tax Cut Deal a Hidden Threat to Social Security." I depend on Social Security for my retirement, and I have a whole lot of company. All those of us who are not wealthy need what we paid into for our entire working lives to be there for us today.

But really, I am trying to accentuate the positive here. I'm having trouble finding the positive, though, since the only people who will be having their taxes go up are those who make $20,000 or less. According to Jason Linkins, the ones who find this a great deal are:

--the highest earners
--the wealthiest 1 percent of the population
--the wealthiest Americans
--hedge fund managers and private equity investors
--an individual earning $110,000
--4 million taxpayers with income in the mid- to high six figures
--estates over $5 million

Unfortunately for me, none of those categories are remotely where I belong. Although I don't make $20,000 or less, it's only because of Social Security! Now I don't usually get political on this blog, but I am really, really having trouble controlling my anxiety and trying really really hard to find out how I can do something about this awful situation. If you feel as I do, please write to your representatives in Congress and let them know what you think.
:-(

News getting me down

I'm very close to taking a news fast. Sometimes I find that I wake up just sad and blue from what's happening in the world, as well as because of my powerlessness to change anything.

There is one thing I can change: hearing about it. There have been times in the past, while in the work force, when I would get completely overwhelmed with the amount of work that lay before me, and I would go home, break out a beer and turn on the TV, but it would not help me one bit to listen to political assassinations, local murders, earthquakes and floods from around the world. With a sigh, I'd turn off the TV and pick up a trashy novel if I had one available.

Today I don't have any such workload, but this morning I woke up feeling so sad about the oil spill and the inability to stop it, with fish, birds, and hundred-year-old sea turtles choking to death on the effluent. The floods in the South, with people washing up dead, reminded me way too much of Hurricane Katrina. And the economic turmoil around the world, all started by the greedy bastards on Wall Street in my own country.

Okay, enough of that! Tomorrow I will go hiking to Dailey Prairie near the Middle Fork of the Nooksack, and I won't have any way to check mail or the news. I just might continue on with a "news fast" and not listen to any news for some period of time. Not having been there before, I found this information about Dailey Prairie:

Beautiful Dailey Prairie is a high-elevation bog located near the Mt. Baker Wilderness area in Whatcom County in northwestern Washington. This outstanding site was identified by the Washington State's Natural Heritage Program as being one of the highest quality natural wetland systems remaining in the state. 

The only part of this that didn't appeal was the word "bog." Wetlands tend to be rather, well, wet. We had our wetlands last week, but I'm prepared for whatever comes my way. It will be in the wilderness and I won't have to worry about any of the news flashes that I swear are designed to make me feel bad.

The picture I am now using for my avatar (profile picture) on Google was taken last week, and I thought I'd show you what the whole picture looks like, taken by Ward AFTER he went rolling down the hillside. I actually love this picture for several reasons: I'm turning my right leg out to show all the mud on my gaiters, but I think it shows a pretty happy person who just hiked ten miles and is still standing. My sparkly hat is hanging from my chest strap, it's not raining, and I could be anywhere in age from fifty to seventy (and I am in there real close to the seventy part).
:-)

Bleeding heart liberal

Yes, that's me: a bleeding heart liberal. This picture is of a gathering of bleeding hearts, taken yesterday outside my apartment. I'm the fourth one from the left :-)

I was tossed from jury duty once when the prosecutor questioned me on the stand during jury selection. I knew he had asked the kinds of questions that branded me as one. But the truth is, I didn't want to be on that jury anyway. I had already made up my mind that the defendant shouldn't walk, so they were right to send me packing.

But this bleeding heart liberal is heartened by the passage of the health care reform bill, even if it is so much less than I had hoped for. I was pushing for the public option, which is what all of us on Medicare have, as well as what all those Congresspeople have. Every other developed country in the world has a system to take care of its citizens, and soon (in four years, that is) we will have it too.

As of today, however, insurance companies can no longer refuse to cover children because they have a pre-existing condition or raise the insurance rates so high that the parents can't pay. We have to wait until 2014 for this to take effect for the parents, however. The bill is not perfect, by any means. You can read here what ten immediate effects will take place when President Obama signs the bill into law.

Yesterday was World Water Day, too. I think I'll write a post about bottled water tomorrow, since it's quite an important issue. Today, though, I wanted to say thank you to all those who fought so hard to get the health care reform bill passed.
:-)

International Women's Day

Happy International Women's Day 2010! Celebrated every year on the 8th of March, it is a major day of global celebration of women. In different regions of the world, the focus of the celebrations ranges from general respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women's economic, political and social achievements. In some places like China, Russia, Vietnam and Bulgaria, IWD is a national holiday. Unfortunately for us Americans, it's not a holiday. Yet. From my favorite information source, Wikipedia:

On the occasion of 2010 International Women's Day, the International Committee of the Red Cross is drawing attention to the hardship displaced women endure. The displacement of populations is one of the gravest consequences of today's armed conflicts. It affects women in a host of ways. Women displaced by armed conflict – often living alone with their children – are frequently exposed to sexual violence, discrimination and intimidation. Many face poverty and social exclusion as well. International humanitarian law therefore includes specific provisions protecting women, for example when they are pregnant or as mothers of young children.

That's something I have never had to worry about, being displaced by war. But this is a huge and very real problem for many women (and men, and families) across Africa and the Middle East, in particular. The movie The Hurt Locker shows what the Iraq war is like for many, including those whose lives are totally disrupted, or lost, by that awful war.

And it's fitting that on IWD Eve 2010 at the Oscars, Kathryn Bigelow was the first woman ever to win the Oscar for Best Director. I saw The Hurt Locker here at home on Netflix, and although I thought it was a really good movie, and although I am at a loss to know exactly what directors actually do, in my mind it wasn't nearly as good a movie as Avatar, or even Up in the Air, which won nothing.

But I think the main difference is, if I look carefully at my feelings, I would much rather live in Pandora than in Iraq. One movie was about the oneness of all things (although it had plenty of war scenes), and the other was about the horror of war (with plenty of war scenes). I saw almost all of the movies that were nominated, except for Precious and Inglourious Basterds, which I intend to correct as soon as I can. I do like to know what passes for great film these days. What do you think?
:-]

Thinking about borders

As many people will be heading to Canada next week for the Winter Olympics, I was thinking about border crossings. Here in northern Washington, going across in Canada is pretty easy, but sometimes getting back across into the United States is not so straightforward. Now you need a passport.

But there ARE countries where border crossings are not so hard. This picture shows the border between the Netherlands and Belgium. Although it's usually known as Holland, I learned that the Netherlands are made up 12 provinces, two of which are North and South Holland, and the people are also known as "Dutch." From that Wikipedia link:

The word "Dutch" is used to refer to the people, the language, and anything pertaining to the Netherlands. This lexical difference between the noun and the adjective is a peculiarity of the English language and does not exist in the Dutch language. The adjective "Dutch" is derived from the language that was spoken in the area, called "Diets," which equals Middle Dutch.

Now that's a very complicated way to describe a country, isn't it? Three different names, but a very civilized border crossing between two countries. I sure wish it could be like this everywhere.
:-)