Castor

It was already dark. (We really are heading appreciably toward the shortest day here in the Northern Hemisphere.) We were driving home from walking over at the high school track. Chuck had the Subaru’s high beams on, which was a very good thing. As we approached a stretch of road with water on both sides, we noticed something large and dark in the road. Chuck slowed the car, bringing it to a full stop. It was a beaver, all sleek and shiny and low to the ground, moving quite deliberately across the road. It was completely unperturbed by us or the car’s idling engine and bright lights. It looked neither left nor right. It was concentrating entirely on the task at hand: the beaver was dragging a tree from one side of the road to the other. It was a sapling, with its orange and red autumn leaves bobbing in the breeze, as the beaver steadily transported it across the asphalt, from the side of the road with the small body of water, to the side with the more capacious pond.

Yes, I’ve lived in rural Massachusetts long enough to know that beavers can wreak enormous amounts of havoc. At that moment, I could not have cared less. I was dazzled. As soon as the last trembling twigs of the sapling disappeared into the marshy growth, I applauded. I could almost hear the beaver, paddling over to the lodge and calling out: “Hi Honey, I’m home! I brought you that birch you admired earlier!”


North American Beaver (castor canadensis). For the absolutely, hands down, best photograph click here!

President Obama Awarded Nobel Peace Prize

We woke to the news streaming across the crawl on the bottom of the NECN screen. Chuck was the first to spot it. We both exclaimed with a mixture of surprise and delight. Because we were rushing around to get ready to go to Rhode Island, all I had time to do was Tweet: “President Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize for "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy & cooperation between people"!” But as I hurried to make breakfast and get out the door, George Gershwin’s line kept running through my mind: “No, no, they can’t take that away from me...” I smiled as I realized what my subconscious was cogitating. I went to the bottom of the stairs and called up to Chuck: “They can never take that away from him!”

Ronnie in South Africa Tweeted at me: “So chuffed [pleased or proud] about the news of Pres obama! Your thoughts? It's a big prize to live up to...” Much later, I replied: “We are thrilled! Yes, it is early, but he steadied the ship of state during the transition & has reached out to the world!”

Are there ironies and incongruities in President Obama having been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize? Yes. Is it premature? No. “Unlike the other Nobel Prizes, which recognize completed scientific or literary accomplishment, the Nobel Peace Prize may be awarded to persons or organizations that are in the process of resolving a conflict or creating peace.” Am I proud? Yes! I am proud of President Obama and honored that a sitting President of the United States has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize!

But it was President Obama who struck all the right notes this morning when he began his remarks this way: “Well, this is not how I expected to wake up this morning.  After I received the news, Malia walked in and said, "Daddy, you won the Nobel Peace Prize, and it is Bo's birthday!"  And then Sasha added, "Plus, we have a three-day weekend coming up."  So it's good to have kids to keep things in perspective.”

He continued: “I am both surprised and deeply humbled by the decision of the Nobel Committee.  Let me be clear:  I do not view it as a recognition of my own accomplishments, but rather as an affirmation of American leadership on behalf of aspirations held by people in all nations. 

To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who've been honored by this prize -- men and women who've inspired me and inspired the entire world through their courageous pursuit of peace.

But I also know that this prize reflects the kind of world that those men and women, and all Americans, want to build -- a world that gives life to the promise of our founding documents.  And I know that throughout history, the Nobel Peace Prize has not just been used to honor specific achievement; it's also been used as a means to give momentum to a set of causes.  And that is why I will accept this award as a call to action -- a call for all nations to confront the common challenges of the 21st century.”

Near his conclusion he said: “...this award must be shared with everyone who strives for justice and dignity...”

That sounds like the man I voted for. That sounds like someone who takes the honor of being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize seriously, with humility and with increased determination to work doggedly to do what is needed for our nation domestically and to live up to this award internationally.

You can read the full transcript and watch the video of President Obama’s remarks here.

1K

Today is a milestone for me.
This is my 1,000th post!
I began Pink Granite on November 25, 2006. I explained how I came to have a blog in a post back in January of 2007. I wasn’t sure how long it would last. I wasn’t sure where it would go or where it would take me or what would happen. But I felt very strongly that it was a good fit for me. 1,000 posts later, I still feel that way.

As I’ve written on my two previous “blogiversaries”, those of you who stop by, read and comment here on Pink Granite enhance and enrich this experience profoundly. Without you, yes, I’d likely still be blogging away as eclectically as ever, but it would just be me talking to myself! Thank you for welcoming me into your communities and for being part of this one.

Power To The Pantry!

Our pantry is important. It doubles as both a food pantry and storage area for what normally lives in “modern” kitchen cabinets. But we don’t have kitchen cabinets - modern or otherwise. We do have a closet in the dining room where all our dishes and glassware live. And we’ve got the pantry. It’s an old house, with an even older kitchen, which is part of the original building. Another reason our pantry has to work extra hard is the fact we live about 25 minutes from the nearest big supermarket. There is a small grocery store and a convenience store nearby where we can purchase any basics we run out of. But when we grocery shop, we tend to stock up.

So it’s not unusual to find me standing in our pantry, just before dinnertime, staring intently at the contents of the shelves. As a result of this intense staring (and being snowed in from time to time) I have created a number of “pantry only” meals. One of them is Mexican Soup, which is also known as Chicken Tortilla Soup. I first started making it many years ago after the craving for Tortilla Soup from the original Miguel’s Restaurant in Bar Harbor, Maine became irresistible. I’ve made it many different ways, but the following is the “pantry only” version - well, except for the cheese!

Lee’s Wicked Easy Mexican Soup

Olive oil
Sherry
chopped onions
crushed garlic
Old El Paso Chopped green chiles, 7 oz
Muir Glen Diced Fire Roasted Tomatoes, 28 oz
Chicken Broth, 14 0z
Beef Broth (OR Veggie broth), 14 oz
Goya Black Beans - rinsed, 15 oz
Kuner’s Refried Black Beans with Lime Juice, 15 oz
Dried Cumin
Mexican Style Chili Powder
Chipotle Powder
Tabasco Chipotle Sauce
Cocoa Powder (adds a nice depth of flavor)
Pinch of Sugar
Trader Joe’s Premium Chunk Chicken, 12 oz (lightly shredded with a fork)

Tortilla chips
Shredded Mexican cheese (Sargento’s is good)


Start the onions, garlic and olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat. Once the onions have softened, add the remaining canned ingredients, except the chicken. Allow the ingredients to simmer, stirring periodically to keep the beans from settling on the bottom of the pot. Taste the soup and begin adding the seasonings according to taste. Once you have the soup seasoned properly, go ahead and add the chicken and continue to let the soup simmer.

In soup bowls, lightly crush a few tortilla chips. Sprinkle some shredded cheese onto the chips. Ladle the soup over the chips and cheese and serve immediately.

This makes a substantial pot of soup. But it freezes beautifully.

RTF As Breadcrumbs

I was working on a digital art project today which suddenly stalled. I wanted to try a particular effect in Photoshop CS3, but for the life of me I couldn’t remember how to get there. It was something I knew I had done before which added to the frustration. So I plugged in my external hard drive where I keep my digital art and scrapbooking files. (Without the EHD, my laptop’s hard drive would have long ago burst forth like Lucy Ricardo’s bread did in her kitchen!) When I create a digital scrapbooking page, a greeting card or any sort of digital art, I make a separate folder for it. I found the folder I was looking for. It held four experiments I had done working with a photograph of autumn leaves. In addition to the four Photoshop files, I also had a Rich Text Format document (RTF) in the folder. On that little no frills document I had typed up each step, filter and setting I had used in each of the digital experiments. Sure enough, there, under #4, was the previously elusive setting of Filter > Distort > Glass > Texture > Blocks which I had been hunting for.

Moral of the story? Create an RTF doc and jot down what you did. With all the fun things to play with in Photoshop Elements or CS3, some nifty technique could easily fall by the wayside. But with the RTF you can find your way back.

Here’s an example of what I was working with (using a photo from Lexington) - which after all that and all that, isn’t what I finally settled on!

The Right To Dry

...air dry that is - your clothes on a clothesline.

It was only recently I learned that it is actually illegal in some places for a person to hang their clothes out on a clothesline. Really. Here’s a video from CBS Sunday Morning. Here’s an article from the New York Times and another from the Baltimore Sun. It’s not just here in the United States. It’s also an issue in Australia and other countries.

When we moved to this house, it had a clothesline outside. But it was about as far away from the laundry room as it could possibly be. The few times I used it, I hated finding bird poop on my freshly laundered clothes and linens. So at some point, Chuck strung a laundry line on our screened front porch. Plenty of fresh air, a fair amount of sunshine, no worries about rain and there was no more risk of surprise splats! But even with that convenience it still took our dryer going on the fritz to get me into the swing of things with hanging laundry. Now I really enjoy it. Chuck put up a total of three sort of zig-zag lines which is just the right number of line feet for a washing machine load’s worth of laundry.

: : If you’d like to learn more about line drying - the practical, the environmental and the political check out Project Laundry List.
: : If you’re part of the Twitterverse, you can follow Project Laundry List on Twitter.
: : For inspiration go to LineDry.
: : And if you’d like to sign a petition to get the White House to bring back their clotheslines, you can go to Right2Dry.org. Mrs. Obama has been doing a great job with the White House vegetable garden. Why not have an environmentally friendly clothesline nearby?

The First

In Lexington, Massachusetts, the first battle of our Revolutionary War was fought on April 19, 1775. It was part of what became known as the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The Colonial Militiamen drove back the British Army. It was an effective start to a long war which came close to ending when General Cornwallis surrendered to the Americans in 1781. But did not officially end until the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783 and was subsequently ratified by Congress in 1784.








This memorial was created by Bashka Paeff and was dedicated “to the Lexington Minute Men who were on the Green in the early morning engagement”. It stands near the Buckman Tavern, across from the Battle Green in Lexington. It is an unusual sculpture and tremendously effective in capturing the intensity of the Colonial Militia’s guerilla warfare against the British Red Coats.

These Minute Men are my heroes. Stories of their struggles and triumphs blanketed my childhood, right alongside tales of the then bounteous numbers of Catholic saints. Add in my immigrant ancestors, the founding fathers of this nation, the subsequent presidents, one pope and the regular GIs and their leaders during World War II to the mix and you have my list of most powerful influences. They all shaped the woman I became. Their collective courage inspired me, as did their fierce, sometimes overwhelming clarity of right versus wrong.

Standing in Lexington, gazing at Ms. Paeff’s stunning relief, I was reminded of that courage and sacrifice, and I was humbled.

Orange On The Green

With the increase in crisp, cool, breezy days I’m beginning to believe autumn is well and truly here. When I see a tree, like this maple on the Battle Green in Lexington, Massachusetts, I have no doubt.

Above Us All

Driving home tonight, not all that long after darkness had fallen, I watched the moon glide in and out of clouds. Sometimes it was just a diffuse glow behind thick cotton, then, free of all obstructions, stark and vivid against a black sky. Occasionally, it was surrounded by a halo, a creamy gossamer ice ring on this crisp autumn night. When we arrived home I reached for the camera. Chuck kindly brought me my walking stick so that I could use it as an improvised monopod. The moon is nearly, but still not quite full. No matter. It’s there. It’s above us all, reflecting, influencing, guiding and it’s beautiful.

Bending Over Backwards

I probably agree with Dan Kennedy somewhere north of 50% of the time. Even when I disagree with him, his writing is always clear and well sourced. But today I have no doubt he hit the nail squarely on the head. In his most recent column for The Guardian, Kennedy holds the United States Media’s collective feet to the fire. The title of his piece: “The Media's Vast Rightwing Idiocy”; subtitle: “America's extreme right is as vocal and irrational as it was in the 1990s and the US media is too spineless to stop it”.

inFLUenza

Chuck and I went to get our seasonal flu shots today. Knowing there would likely be a crowd, we both brought along books to read. The line was indeed long. For about 45 minutes we shuffled along, noses in our books. Except of course when folks stopped to chat and to tell us we were smart to bring books with us!

: : If you live in Massachusetts you can locate a flu clinic by clicking on this link.

: : For other states, check out the Flu Clinic Locator over at the American Lung Association’s website. Because the ALA seems to be focusing on commercial based clinics at drugstores, you can also try Googling “public flu clinic” along with the name of your state.

: : If you’d like to learn more about seasonal influenza, as well as the H1N1 virus, check out flu.gov. It’s a very good, user-friendly website with a wealth of information.

Much Better

After a solid night’s sleep, waking to sunshine in the morning was a big lift to my spirits. Finding encouraging comments waiting for me in my e-mail put a veritable spring in my step. I thank you for that. I also managed to get to a sewing project today. Not unlike last year when I created a bag for us to use on short hikes, today I made a little case for our iPod to go in. I still need to find a piece of velcro to close the flap with, but it’s pretty good. I love working out the design and the process as I go along. Which, since I don’t love following recipes and patterns always feel as if they slow me down, winging it suits me just fine. Mind you, I really dislike ripping seams. Even when I use a lovely seam ripper like this one which I bought from Cynthia a couple of years ago on eBay. Happily, today I did not need to employ that beauty even once! All in all, a good day.

Blue Gray

Someone should tell me to “put down the keyboard and step away from the computer” when I feel like this. No it’s not political angst - although if I spent a nanosecond thinking about the topic I’m sure I could find something to post about. No, I am in a blue funk. I know I am overtired. I know it was a gray, rainy day today, both here and down in Rhode Island, where we went to see my Mom. (Because of our colds we had been politely banned from her presence for a couple of weeks!) My Mom did have some health hiccups over the last several days which had us worried. But while she seemed a little tired, Mom was generally in fine fettle. In fact, once she had hold of the shopping cart in the stores, if Chuck or I stopped for a second, we would see this blur of a little old lady in tennis shoes zipping down the aisle! That was encouraging and reassuring.

So I don’t know exactly what has me down in the dumps. But I am going to put down the keyboard and hope that a good night’s sleep helps get me back on track.

Freedom To Read

Thanks to Morgan I can pass along the fact that “Banned Books Week” began today. The very idea of banned books is deeply troubling. There are all kinds of books: good, bad, stupid, brilliant, lyrical, dense and ugly - some of them really, truly ugly. But the problem with banning books is: Who gets to do the banning?

Celebrate the Freedom To Read! Start at Banned Books Week.org.

Bill Sparkman, Continued

I don’t know who killed Bill Sparkman, a part time employee of the United States Census Bureau. But as more information is revealed, the more it appears that the fact Mr. Sparkman was employed by the Federal Government was significant to whomever murdered him.

The cause of Mr. Sparkman’s death has been determined to be “asphyxiation”. He was found hanging from a tree, with a noose around his neck, but his feet were in contact with the ground. Roger Alford and Jeffrey McMurray of the Associated Press are reporting that Bill Sparkman was found “naked, gagged and had his hands and feet bound with duct tape”. The word “FED” was written on Mr. Sparkman’s chest with a felt tip pen. It was also reported that the murder or murderers had “duct-taped his hands, his wrists. He had duct tape over his eyes, and they gagged him with a red rag”. Additionally, his Census Worker identification badge was duct taped to the side of his neck.

I’m calling this murder for what seems to me to be obvious reasons. I cannot understand why, nearly two weeks after Mr. Sparkman’s body was discovered, authorities have still not officially determined whether his death was a homicide, suicide or an accident.

Was Bill Sparkman murdered because he worked for the Federal Government?
Was Bill Sparkman murdered specifically because of his work for the Census Bureau?
Was Bill Sparkman murdered because he stumbled upon some illegal activity, such as marijuana harvesting or a meth lab?
Was Bill Sparkman murdered for some unknown reason and the writing of “FED” on his chest and duct-taping of his Census I.D. badge to his body was done to misdirect law enforcement?

We don’t yet know.

Bill Sparkman

Back in 2000, in late winter and early spring, I was employed by the United States Census Bureau. I worked for a couple of months going door to door in rural parts of central Massachusetts for the Constitutionally directed enumeration of the population, which must take place at least once every ten years. As a family genealogist, I was interested to experience the work of an enumerator. I had blessed many an enumerator over the years for their A+ penmanship; as well as cursed many an enumerator for hen scratching and sloppy transcription of my ancestors names! But as it turned out, the most interesting aspect of the job was heading up and down dirt roads - including traversing a rickety bridge in one direction which was declared impassable by the time I tried to return - and seeing all the ways people lived their lives. The sociologist in me rose to the surface as day after day, the overriding impression I got from most people was a deep desire to be rooted somewhere. Whether it was a mobile home which rightly would be classified as a trailer, a modest wood-framed structure or an elaborate estate, people wanted their patch of earth to leave wild and unkempt or manicured to within an inch of its life. They wanted home - whatever house and home meant to them.

As I went house to farm to trailer, there were many empty homes, but just as many without people, but with dogs left outside guarding their master’s castle. I became quite adept at sizing up the canines and learned that extending my canvas barn jacket covered elbow, out the door of my little two door hatchback, gave any dogs that charged the car a chance to sniff me and catch the lingering scent of my English Springer Spaniel. I was never bitten and never driven off by any dog, but I was nose-butted in the back of the legs all the way back to my car by one determined mutt who had reached their limit with the stranger.

I found mostly cooperative, friendly people in my work. More than a few times I encountered elderly folks who were obviously lonely. After I asked my brief questions, they often were reluctant to have me leave. I was another human being, a friendly face and a change of pace. A few folks worried about me. They would cluck that the weather was getting too harsh for me to be out in, or I should be careful all alone on the back roads. Some folks were cranky or rushed or a little fearful of a stranger - even a 41 year old woman with a identification badge around her neck. I was always surprised when the downright rude people felt so comfortable to be insolent right to my face. And I was never surprised when the arrival of my willing ears led to the unbidden tumbling out of personal stories.

During the census training we were warned about what to do if we encountered violent opposition to our work. We were told it would be unlikely. That there were areas of our nation where there could be and had been problems. But it still came as a shock when one of my fellow enumerators reported having been run off a property at gunpoint. He was unharmed, but it changed the feeling of the remainder of our work. Coincidentally, shortly after that incident, with less than a week to go in our work, an editorial ran in a local paper disparaging the activities of the Census Bureau and claiming government intrusion into the lives of the citizenry. After that editorial ran, I encountered enormous resistance to the enumeration process. A remarkable number of people were cold and taciturn. I returned home at the end of long days weary, not from the detail oriented work, but from the social hostility.

Today I learned that a 51 year old man named Bill Sparkman was found hanged from a tree in Kentucky, with the word “FED” scrawled on his chest. Bill Sparkman was a part time field worker for the United States Census Bureau. Door to door Census interviews have been suspended in Clay County while the investigation into Mr. Sparkman’s murder continues. Bill Sparkman is survived by his mother and his son. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke described Mr. Sparkman as “a shining example of the hardworking men and women employed by the Census Bureau.”

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Wild World

My sister Gail in Georgia and Morgan in Australia are trying to coordinate a bit of an international weather swap/equalizing. But considering how wild and wooly the weather has been in both areas lately, they’d best be careful. Mother Nature seems to be in a bit of a snit. Perhaps she doesn’t feel we made enough progress today at the United Nations Climate Summit!

Here’s the flooding update from The Atlanta Journal Constitution.
And the red dust storm update is from The Sydney Morning Herald.

This & That

: : The coughing and nose blowing which have been the hallmarks of this charming cold of mine continue. But I think it is safe to write that I am turning the corner on it. Unfortunately, Chuck is following in my footsteps. But he’s a couple of days behind me. I’ve also had a relentless headache today - probably from all the coughing. Blech!

: : I’m hoping the rainy weather down in Greater Atlanta, Georgia, where my sister Gail lives - and all over the southeast - begins to improve very soon. While they have needed their aquifers to be recharged, the relentless abundance of rain is too much of a good thing all at once.

: : On a far more cheerful note, I was “BlogLogged” over at Daily Worcesteria. I’m honored that Pink Granite caught their eye once again!

: : Here’s another good summary of President Obama’s Health Insurance Reform Plan. There’s a brief bulleted list and a four minute video. When you are contacting your Congressional representatives and The White House (which I’m sure you’re doing!) be sure to emphasize the need for a genuine Public Option. Thanks!

: : Ever feel overwhelmed by the enormous number of fabulous things over on Etsy? Then check out Etsy’s The Storque “Spotlight” section and click on any posts about their “Finds”. They lay out a lovely trail of artistic breadcrumbs for you to follow. Enjoy!

Grapes Grow On Vines - Right?

According to an article in today’s Boston Globe: “Massachusetts Winemakers Push To Sell At Farmers' Markets”. State Senator Jamie Eldridge, of the Middlesex and Worcester District, is described in the piece as the “lead sponsor of a bill that would permit wine tastings and sales at farmers' markets .” I think it’s a great idea. Wineries are an important part of the Massachusetts economy, its agriculture and tourism.

We love the farmers’ markets we go to. They offer an eclectic mix of fruits, vegetables, plants, eggs, meats, cheeses, preserves, breads and other baked goods produced by local farmers and small business owners. Allowing local wineries to present the fruits of their harvest would round things out nicely. A loaf of bread, a wedge of cheese, a bottle of Massachusetts wine, you and your favorite “thou” - sounds like the beginning of lovely day!

Do Not Pull The Shade

Last Sunday, I wrote that I believe the color of President Barack Obama’s skin is at the heart of some of the deep hatred and particularly vicious vitriol aimed squarely at him. I do not believe it is true of all of his critics. I do not believe that everyone who is critical of President Obama’s policies and agenda are bigoted. But I do believe that which we name as racism is powerful, in abundance and being wielded as bluntly as a machete and as softly as a pin prick.

On Tuesday, former President Jimmy Carter stated that he believed “...an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man.” Despite powerful push-back from the far right and a cautious, measured reaction from the left, President Carter continued to speak his mind.

Today, over on “The Root”, Sherrilyn A. Ifill wrote about what she calls “Jimmy Carter's Difficult Truth”. The sub heading reads as follows: ”The dismissive response from both Republicans and Democrats to the former president's comments on race shows why we need more, not less, discussion about the issue in America.”

The conversation continues...

Grateful

We came through today’s dental adventures in one piece, if not more than a little weary and decidedly lighter in the wallet! As we drove home, me with the roughness of my temporary crown relentlessly drawing the attention of my tongue and Chuck with his antibiotic-saturated root canal throbbing a bit, the dominant feeling we shared was one of gratitude. As we thought about our dentist, his assistant and the hygienist who popped her head in to check on us, we couldn’t believe our good fortune. Adding to our sense of wonder was the fact that the endodontist Chuck met today for the very first time, had been excellent - a patient, careful, teacher.

My first dental experiences as a little kid were dreadful - not quite Dickensian, but scary, painful and involving what was likely the unnecessary loss of too many teeth. I finally got good dental care at the age of fourteen, but by then Dr. M. had to spend an enormous amount of time and energy repairing earlier damage. So, many years ago, long after I had moved from Rhode Island, I followed Chuck to his dentist. (Nothing beats a first hand recommendation from someone you trust.) Even so, my first visit with Dr. W. I spent trembling and weeping. That was sufficiently distracting to the dear fellow that he wrote me a prescription for Valium/Diazepam on the spot. Then Dr. W. had to retire for health reasons and in came Dr. D. (Oh no. Please don’t make me adjust to another new dentist!) But Dr. D. was fine - very low key and quiet. But soon the hygienist who understood my dental fears retired as well. Suddenly, we were going to a dental practice where the staff had experienced a huge turnover. It reminded us of the old joke about “This is my great-grandfather’s hammer. My grandfather replaced the handle and my father replaced the head.”!

But today, as Dr. D. finished up his careful work and explained what I should and shouldn’t do until the permanent crown was in place, I began to cry. I’m sure some of it was from the release of tension that the procedure was over. But mostly it was an overpowering sense of gratitude that Dr. D. is so good at his job. He told us that he went to dental school later than most, after making a career switch. Through my tears, I patted his knee and said how glad I was that he had changed professions. I was also rather proud of myself because this was the first time in more than a decade that I underwent anything more than a routine teeth cleaning without Valium.

That’s why, driving home, we kept focusing on how wonderful it was to have access to excellent, pain free, compassionate dental care. The fact that these folks are warm, well intentioned, human beings (and Red Sox fans) with good senses of humor makes it an embarrassment of riches.

No News...

...is good news. Because of my cold, I called our dentist just now to let them know I’m sick and to ask for their recommendation about keeping my appointment. They asked about my symptoms and then gave me the green light to come in as scheduled. A part of me was a little disappointed. But I think I’m just as glad to get this out of the way. Happily, Chuck shows no signs of having caught my cold. So all of today’s fun activities will proceed as scheduled.

Note to self: We need to plan much better “fun activities”!

I Think I’ve Reached My Quota

They say bad things come in threes. If true, I’m all set now, thanks. First, Chuck developed a toothache. So a trip to the dentist was in order. Because on our last visit, just a few weeks ago, they spotted a slight crack in one of my teeth, which the dentist felt would be a quick fix, we made back to back appointments. Chuck went in first, but emerged way too quickly. Verdict: a root canal is needed. Then I slipped into the chair. Verdict: not just a quick fix, I need a crown. All this fun and excitement continues on Thursday. Then, I came down with what I hope is just a cold - a very, very brief, low-impact cold. (Did you hear that Universe?) Although with news coverage of seasonal flu and H1N1 flu, I’ll admit to a niggling worry that it could be worse.

Tomorrow we were scheduled to go down to Rhode Island to visit with my Mom. Mom, age 85, stopped driving her automobile August 1st. While we are grateful Mom made the decision of her own volition, we were also all pretty concerned about how she would cope without her almost daily jaunts to the supermarket and other nearby stores. But she has done beautifully. Between family, friends and volunteers Mom has been getting out and about - so much so, that a couple of times we have had to put off our visits because she’s so busy! Unfortunately, my cold has thrown a monkey wrench into our plans for tomorrow. When I called Mom this afternoon I had to tell her I had a cold. Before I could elaborate she interrupted with: “I love you, but I don’t want you near me, dear.”!

So here’s to Novocaine, cold tabs, Kleenex tissues, hand sanitizer and a mother who knows exactly what she does and does not want!

I’m Not Alone

Former President Jimmy Carter, during an interview today with Brian Williams of NBC, stated the following:

“I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man. That he is African-American.”

They Protested

Jeff over at Wormtown Taxi writes today about the protest which took place in Washington, D.C. yesterday. I’m grateful to him for articulating something which has been percolating in me for some time. He highlights the sharp contrast between protesting for altruistic reasons in defense of others and protesting because of a perceived threat that your own ox is about to be gored.

It’s difficult to characterize these protesters, these tea party-ers, these birthers and tenthers, except as Jeff did when he wrote (a la the movie “Network”): “[They are] mad as hell, and not gonna take this anymore...". If only “this” could be precisely, decisively defined. In response to Jeff’s post I wrote the following:

The fruit salad of ill-informed, bumper sticker philosophy that has characterized these protesters has left me puzzled. When I see their outrage, I can't help but wonder where the heck was it for, say, the last eight years? Why now?

I've called them sheep and puppets for having been manipulated and stirred up by the health insurance companies and their deep pocketed lobbyists. But unless something had them upset in the first place, they shouldn't have been quite so susceptible to such extreme and patently obvious lies.

The presidential campaign last year got ugly. But it never reached the current level of extreme hatred until this summer. I think the opposition to health insurance reform (insurance companies, their lobbyists, Republicans, etc.) either knew what they were doing or were lucky when they tapped into a deep feeling of shock and fear among mostly white, mostly middle class and, based on August town hall meetings, mostly middle aged or older Americans. I honestly believe that having a well educated, articulate, charismatic black man as President of the United States has shaken them to their core.

I'm a liberal and a lower-case-i independent. President Barack Obama is a Democrat and appreciates the liberal wing of his party, but he is a remarkably conservative, centrist politician. To see him portrayed as Hitler, a Socialist and a radical intent on "pulling the plug on Grandma" would be laughable if these people weren't so damned serious and damn near unhinged by blind rage.

Political awareness is one's responsibility as a citizen. Heck, the first letter I wrote to a politician was to President Nixon when I was in elementary school! Vigorous debate, opposing viewpoints, competing philosophies and legislation are vital to a healthy Democracy. But so are facts. So is the truth. So is respect.

September 11th

It was a day unlike today, with sun, blue skies and white clouds. Stunningly beautiful, yet completely ordinary, as people went about their normal routines; getting kids ready for school and heading off to work. Then, the ordinariness was shattered. First, we thought it was a terrible accident. But before we had a chance to absorb it all, shock turned to horror, then a cascade of feelings as the day turned into night, followed by more days, upon days.

We remember...

Peace...


More thoughts can be found here.

Yes We Can!

”The time for bickering is over.  The time for games has passed.  Now is the season for action.  Now is when we must bring the best ideas of both parties together, and show the American people that we can still do what we were sent here to do.  Now is the time to deliver on health care.”
- President Barack Obama, September 9, 2009

Tonight President Barack Obama, in his speech before a joint session of Congress, hit one out of the park! I was very pleased both with the content of the speech and his performance. He reviewed the history of this decades long struggle for healthcare and health insurance reform. He called out the lies and disinformation. He summoned the spirit of the late Senator Ted Kennedy; with Teddy’s widow and children in attendance. Most importantly, he outlined a solid roadmap to get the citizens of our country the stability and security they deserve.

Over at Organizing For America they have an good summary of the President’s plan - which includes a public option.

They also provide a very simple and speedy way for you to contact your Members of Congress to urge them to support President Obama’s plan.

psssst...Do Something!

Public Option

Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich has made a brief video explaining the necessity of a Public Option in the final Health Insurance Reform bill. He has also been writing cogent posts on a variety of subjects, including the healthcare debate over on his blog.



President Obama will be speaking before a joint session of Congress tomorrow evening at 8:00 p.m. Now is the time to contact your senators, your congressional representative and the the White House to let them know you want the Public Option.

Here’s how to do it:

Via the Internet: Click here to send an e-mail.

Via Telephone:
Comments: 202-456-1111

Switchboard: 202-456-1414

FAX: 202-456-2461

Via TTY/TDD:
Comments: 202-456-6213


Via Postal Service:
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Via Twitter: Use the address @BarackObama and @whitehouse (both of these are verified accounts)

Do you need to find the contact information for your senators? Follow this link to the U.S. Senate and use the “Find Your Senators” search box in the upper right corner of the page.

Looking for your congressperson’s contact information? Click on this link to the U.S. House and enter your zip code in the upper left hand corner of the page.

If you have questions about health insurance reform (or want to find out if a rumor is true or false) you can check the White House’s webpage called Reality Check.

Another source of clarification is the Organizing for America webpage called Setting the Record Straight.

And FactCheck.org remains an excellent location to parse truth from misinformation on a wide variety of topics, including the current healthcare debate.


psssst...Do Something!

One Year!

Happy first wedding anniversary
to Al and Carrie!
May happiness be
your constant companion!

A Table For Four

One year ago yesterday, by the day of the week, we were in Newport, Rhode Island for the wedding rehearsal and dinner in honor of our niece Carrie and her then fiance Al. It was a lovely late summer evening, spent surrounded by family and friends over good food, with lots of laughter. Last night, we found ourselves in Newport once again, on a similarly balmy night. This time just a few wharves away from where the rehearsal dinner had been held. This time with friends from the other side of the globe; friends we had never met before. This time there was also good food and lots of laughter.

Morgan, of DancingMorganMouse, and her husband, the pseudonymous “Mr. Brown”, were traveling all the way from their home in Sydney, Australia to New York City. As part of the journey they scheduled a side trip to Newport where we made plans to meet for dinner. I am, at heart, a shy person. So imagine the butterflies I had in anticipation of meeting someone to whom I had felt virtually connected for just over two years, but with whom I had never spoken. The butterflies were completely unnecessary.

We met at The Mooring restaurant and were seated at a table on the deck looking out over the boats, as the sun was setting. A waiter named Rob, with the patience of a saint, took care of us all evening. Though as we were so busy talking it was quite difficult to get us to focus on the menu and make our selections. We began with the “Bag of Doughnuts” which are the sophisticated version of the classic Rhode Island clam cake. In this case it was a fritter made with lobster, crab and shrimp, with a chipotle maple aioli sauce on the side. They were scrumptious and the rest of the choices continued to clear the high bar set by the “doughnuts”.

So, yes, the food was fine, the Sauvignon Blanc chosen intuitively by Morgan for its name "Frog’s Leap”, was a great accompaniment, the view peaceful, but the best part was meeting two new people who felt like old friends. The conversation was wide ranging, never flagged and included topics one is advised against venturing into, such as politics and religion. But because Morgan and I have been reading about each others’ lives and sharing lots of that with Mr. Brown and Chuck, we already had well-established, solid, common ground.

I’ve written before about how finding intelligent, kind, well-intentioned, genuinely funny people all around the world via Pink Granite has been an extraordinary gift. Knowing such good folks are just a few keystrokes away has brought happiness and contentment into my life. Being able to meet Morgan and Mr. Brown face to face and share a long (How did 6:00 p.m. fly by to become midnight?), lovely evening together was even better than I could have imagined.

: : Update: Morgan has now posted her perceptions of their trip to Newport!

Urban Forest

The Worcester Tree Initiative is holding a “Fall 2009 Kickoff Event” on September 13th, from Noon to 4:00 p.m. at Forest Grove Middle School. Congressman Jim McGovern and Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray will be in attendance. There will be tree planting demonstrations, which are required in order to receive a free tree.

Thanks to Destination Worcester for their Twitter Alert. Which was a Re-Tweet from “albtweets” - the Asian Longhorned Beetle Twitter page for the Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Project.

A Life In 41 Pictures

Alan Taylor of the Boston Globe has pulled together a truly stunning photo essay on the life and passing of Senator Ted Kennedy. You can view the nearly full screen images, strung all onto one page, at Boston.com by clicking here.

Eighteen Years!

”Happy Anniversary to us,
Happy Anniversary to us,
Happy Anniversary dear Chuck & Lee
Happy Anniversary to us -
and many more!
Wheeeeeee!!!”

Eighteen years ago, the weather was just as beautiful as it is today when our families gathered in our home for the wedding. Chuck and I had known each other for six years; been together for three. We were certain we wanted to be married. We were sure we were the happiest we could be. By the end of the year, we both realized that we were continuing to feel happier and more content as the weeks turned into months. It may sound silly, but that floored us. Luckily, amazingly it continues to be true. They say a second marriage is a triumph of optimism over experience. I’m so glad we felt that optimism, grabbed onto it and let it carry us down the aisle!

Sounds About Right

The following was printed on the anniversary card we received from my Mom today:

A happy marriage
is what happens
when two people
decide that they
not only love each other
they really like each other.


Her note was awfully sweet too!

The (Sentimental) Geek That Is Me

Friday evening, the “Celebration of a Life” in honor of Ted Kennedy was broadcast on television. It was in the spirit of an Irish wake, but on a much larger scale. Held at the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library in Boston, with Teddy’s flag draped casket right in front of the podium, there was singing, stories, laughter and tears. It truly was a celebration. And it was exactly the sort of thing that Teddy would have loved. All of the speakers did a good job of revealing additional facets of Senator Kennedy. It’s hard to say, but I think the funniest moments came from Senator John C. Culver. He and Teddy were on the Harvard football team together. Let’s just say the story of the salmon salad sandwiches coupled with a storm tossed sea was priceless. The singing was great, including the finale of “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling” which no one wanted to stop singing. But the most touching was when Nick Littlefield, an attorney and former senate chief of staff for Teddy, sang “Love Changes Everything” from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Aspects of Love”. Mr. Littlefield explained that it was a favorite of Teddy’s and that Teddy sang it the last time they were together. We all could understand the relevance of the lyrics because of the way Ted’s life had been transformed by his wife Vicki.

Today, we went to iTunes to see if we could find a recording of “Love Changes Everything” that we liked. There were versions by Sarah Brightman, Michael Crawford and myriad other artists. But none of them had the heart, the passion, nor the personal connection to Ted and Vicki which had captured our hearts. Then I remembered what I had done in a similar situation last January. So I began hunting for a video clip of Mr. Littlefield’s performance. Sure enough, it was already available on YouTube. I went back into the archives here on Pink Granite and found the post where I explained how I stripped a video down to just the audio for a song. (It’s a good thing I turned it into a post because I didn’t remember all the steps!) In just a few minutes I had Nick Littlefield singing “Love Changes Everything” playing from our iPod.

Here’s the video:



Thank you Mr. Littlefield.

Birthday Greetings!

These Phlox are a bit out of season, but their color is about right. Because Veronica (A.K.A. Purple Ronnie) is celebrating a birthday today!

Senator Kennedy

Senator Edward Moore Kennedy has been laid to rest. His family, friends and colleagues did a beautiful job of hitting absolutely all the right notes, as they celebrated Ted’s life and mourned his passing. Ever since the senator was diagnosed with brain cancer last May we have dreaded this time. Every milestone that Ted was able achieve - his speech at the Democratic Convention, the election of Barack Obama and then the inauguration - we felt gratitude. Seeing television footage of Ted and his wife Vicki, along with their dogs Splash and Sunny, off for a sail on their boat “Maya” we felt happy for them and for every post-diagnosis day they were given.

Now Ted rests at Arlington Cemetery, near to his brothers Bobby and Jack. Now we must join together to bring to fruition the work left undone. If we need guidance, Ted’s grandchildren and great nieces and nephews provided some during today’s funeral mass. The Prayer of the Faithful (part of the Liturgy of the Word within the Catholic mass, adjusted weekly to reflect the particular needs and concerns of a parish and the larger Church) became a call to service. Hearing Teddy’s own words and wisdom read by a younger generation provided inspiration and encouragement.

Senator Kennedy

There’s a lot happening all around the world today - good and bad, mundane and important. But here in our home in Central Massachusetts we are mourning the passing of one of our own: Senator Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009). Ted Kennedy was the only one of the four sons of Joseph and Rose Kennedy to grow older and snowy haired before our eyes. His eldest brother Joseph Patrick Kennedy, Jr. was killed in action in World War II. His next eldest brother President John Fitzgerald Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. His next eldest brother Senator Robert Francis Kennedy was assassinated in 1968.

The Bible verse: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required.” (Luke 12:48) was quoted and paraphrased by the Kennedy’s and were words they lived by. Ted Kennedy made those words manifest in his service to the Commonwealth and to the entire United States during his nearly 47 years as a senator from Massachusetts. Ted served proudly as a Democrat, a progressive, and a liberal. He spoke for all of us, but most especially he spoke for those without power or privilege. He cared about equality, fairness and justice and kept those values in the forefront of all of his political work.

Senator Kennedy is survived by his sister Jean Kennedy Smith; his wife Victoria Reggie Kennedy; his children Kara Anne, Edward Jr. and Patrick Kennedy; his step-children Curran and Caroline Raclin; his grandchildren; his nieces and nephews; the citizens of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; the citizens of the United States of America; and the citizens of the world.


“...the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives & the dream shall never die.”
- Senator Ted Kennedy at the 1980 Democratic Convention


“The work begins anew. The hope rises again. And the dream lives on.”
- Senator Ted Kennedy at the 2008 Democratic Convention

Quick Report

I’m not exactly sure where today went. It was all a bit of a blur. But I do want to report that the weather prophets are continuing to say that Thursday we will turn the corner on this hazy, hot and humid icky-stickiness we have been experiencing. Come on Thursday!

I also must report that Kate turned us on to fully cooked, grilled chicken strips from Trader Joe’s. She incorporated them into her Fajita Bar the other night and they were delicious. So tonight I made a quick reduction of some sherry, balsamic vinegar and orange juice. I added a drizzle of olive oil, some black pepper, a little crushed garlic and a splash of Frank’s hot sauce. When there was barely any liquid on the bottom of the pan I tossed in the TJ’s chicken strips, stirred them to coat, covered the pan and turned off the heat. Meanwhile, I made a couple of big tossed salads and topped them with the chicken strips. Chuck and I both loved it and the bonus was I barely added any heat from cooking to the kitchen. Yay!

Sweat & Strawberries*

The heat and humidity continue to be overpowering. The dewpoint has been hovering around 70 which is officially “oppressive”. Neither Chuck nor I are cut out for this sort of miserably hot and soupy weather. Earlier in the week some of the weather prophets were predicting a welcome break beginning tomorrow. Now, not so much. The possibly mythical dry spell has been pushed off to later in the week.

Dayenu (Enough)

Last night we enjoyed generous hospitality and good food at our niece Kate and her husband Phil’s home. First Kate took us along on a photographic trip to Machu Picchu and the Amazon. I’m so happy that Kate had this once in a lifetime trip, but after seeing the zoom shots of the insects, it’s not at the top of my “Dream Travel” locations - at least not the Amazon part! Kate then prepared a chicken Fajita bar which was yummy. But she crowned the meal with her interpretation of an Ina Garten recipe. She scooped out creamy chocolate ice cream and then spooned on sliced fresh strawberries which she had tossed in balsamic vinegar. Heavenly!

* I know that’s a dreadful title for a post, but I blame the dewpoint! ;o)

Redux

After reading this article in the New York Times entitled: “Florida Retirees Wary of Changes to Health Care”, I’ve come to a conclusion. Clearly it’s time for the “The Great Schlep” - Part Two!

Set For Success School Supply Drive

Claudia Snell is working hard to get the word out about Worcester’s “Fourth Annual Set For Success School Supplies and Backpack Program”.

In a recent post, Claudia explained the program and where you can drop off needed supplies. She also included this explanation of the program:

Kate Toomey and Friendly House are collecting school supplies for kids in Worcester whose families need a little extra help with “back to school” preparations. They are asking everyone who can to help out by purchasing some school supplies that they can distribute to homeless or disadvantaged children and teens.

If you prefer, you can certainly send a check made out to:
Friendly House — Set For Success

and mail it to:
Friendly House
Set For Success
36 Wall Street
Worcester, MA 01604

Fact From FRiction

Repeatedly, throughout this healthcare “debate” and Town Hall furor, I have been struck by the middle aged to elderly individuals declaring what they think the Congress and the President are trying to do by offering a “public option” is turning America Socialist/Marxist/fill-in-the-blank-ist. Then, in the same breath, they demand that their Medicare be left alone. Sigh...

Medicare is a Single Payer system. Most folks who have Medicare like it - actually, they really like it. The Veterans Health Administration, the part of the Department of Veterans Affairs which deals with all things medical, is also classified as a single payer system, but it is closer to the National Health Service in England, in that most services are provided by employees of the VA. Most veterans like the coverage - actually, they really like it.

There has been an overwhelming amount of disinformation and flat out lies spread by deep pocketed groups who have a significant investment (literally) in maintaining the status quo of healthcare and health insurance in the United States. So how do we stop the liars in their tracks? We spread the truth as zealously as they spread the lies.

We’ll start with an amusing, albeit impertinent, but abundantly clear differentiation between the Canadian Healthcare system and the National Health Service in England. Not to worry, it’s brief and there are lots of photographs! Recently, Republicans, pundits on the right and pro-private insurance corporations lobbyists have been tossing Canada and England into the same language blender, adding a dash of Socialism, a shot of “death panels” and a slug of fear to make every other country on Earth’s healthcare look barbaric. They have even gone so far as to write that Stephen Hawking’s life would be “essentially worthless” under England’s National Health Service. Apparently the folks at Investor’s Business Daily didn’t realize that Dr. Hawking was a proud beneficiary of England’s National Health Service, for nearly all of his sixty plus years.

So if we hear a rumor - wild eyed, other planetary or with just enough of a shred of credibility to make us wonder - we can check the White House’s webpage called Reality Check. Another source of clarification is the Organizing for America webpage called Setting the Record Straight.

Robert Reich has a fast read in Salon entitled “The Public Option's Last Stand”. I will be surprised if, after reading his essay, Professor Reich hasn’t inspired you to call your senators, congressperson and the White House to insist upon a public option - while we still can. You know I did!

Now, if what you long for is a dyed-in-the-wool-lefty-liberal-progressive-power-to-the-people sort of fellow, but you fear they are as extinct as the poor Passenger Pigeon, fear not. I have found one! His name is Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-NY). As far as I can tell he’s right up there with Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Senator Sanders, while Mayor of Burlington, once complimented me on the work I was doing to educate and organize fellow workers, so I can personally vouch for his deep progressive credentials! But I digress. Congressman Weiner has made the television rounds lately with clear, logical arguments in favor a strong public option. You can watch his video clips and see for yourself.

Lastly, Rachel Maddow has once again managed to sum up the obstacle that is Congressional Republicans today. She calls it the “Parable of the Pizza”. Watch it below and then shout it from the rooftops that the Democrats, including President Obama, need to order the "pizza" the people voted for last November. The same “pizza” we have been waiting for since the Truman Administration!

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Texas

Starting with this 2009-2010 school year, Texas high schools will be required to offer elective courses in the Bible.

I ask the question: Why?

Required and elective is interesting.

Here’s a link to the text of Texas House Bill 1287 which was passed in 2007.

Sec. 28.011 “The Bible’s Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and New Testament” is interesting.

“Sec. (i)  This section does not prohibit the board of trustees of a school district from offering an elective course based on the books of a religion other than Christianity. In determining whether to offer such a course, the board may consider various factors, including student and parent demand for such a course and the impact such books have had on history and culture.” is interesting.

Here’s a report from The Statesman, an Austin newspaper which will provide more local background.

A quote from The Statesman article: “Many school districts, including Austin and most other Central Texas districts, say their current high school curriculum already satisfies the requirement because it addresses world religions in history and geography courses.”

Which brings me back to my original question: Why? Why legislate required elective courses? Why legislate courses in “The Old Testament” and “The New Testament”, which simply by naming them that way focuses on Christianity?

Thinking about the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, I understand that this Texas law does not establish a state religion (Establishment Clause) nor does it limit or restrict a citizen’s right to practice any religion they choose (Free Exercise Clause). But I have to say it sure as heck feels to me like the phrase “slippery slope” was coined for just such an occasion as this.

And I would loved to have seen the reaction in the Texas Legislature had this same legislation been introduced with “Qur'an” or “Tao Te Ching” substituted for “Bible” throughout H.B. 1287.

Very Cool!

I so wish I meant the weather.
But actually I was “BlogLogged” over at Daily Worcesteria.
Thanks for noticing Pink Granite!

Odds & Ends

: : Maria Shriver’s eulogy for her mother Eunice Kennedy Shriver was brilliant. It was warm, funny, inspiring, revealing (“I don’t want to hear one more yip out of you.”) and full of love.

: : Any alcohol based hand sanitizer you purchase must contain at least 60% alcohol in order to be effective, this according to the CDC. Why do I know this? I dislike the strong fragrance in commercial hand sanitizer products. I began investigating making my own unscented version after I got sticker shock over the price of an unscented commercial version.

: : Chuck brought home a perfectly lovely and petite cauliflower from the Farmers’ Market. Despite the heat, I made up a cheese sauce for it and it was very tasty. Why do I crave autumnal dishes during the dog days of summer? Why do I give in to those cravings? And how do you pronounce cauliflower?

: : What’s up with the inconsistencies with our Sunday newspaper delivery? I know you can’t answer that question, it’s just on my mind, it being Sunday and all.

: : Can the Boston Red Sox rebound from this lousy position of being 7.5 games behind the New York Yankees in the American League East? In a similar vein: can anyone keep up with this season’s ever changing Red Sox roster?

Remember Terri Schiavo?

All of the lying and deliberate spreading of misinformation about the fictional “death panels” (a term made infamous by Former Governor Sarah Palin, R-AK) has been designed to scare the daylights out of the elderly. The proposed language in one of the House bills, simply stated that if someone wanted to discuss living wills, health care proxies or other end of life care issues with their doctor, Medicare would pay for one such office visit, every five years.

With that, the Republicans were off and running. Declaring, in the most inflammatory terms, that the big, scary, intrusive Government-with-a-capital-G would be deciding who could live and who should die. The Government would be pulling the plug on grandma. From this verbal molotov cocktail, the conflagration grew. Repeatedly, Republicans spoke about how inappropriate it would be for the Government to intrude and insert itself in what should be a private family matter about end of life care.

Despite these outrageous lies and distractions, intelligent folks like 1995 Rhodes Scholar Rachel Maddow cast their memories back to 2005 and the case of Terri Schiavo. Very briefly, Terri Schiavo, age 41, was in a persistent vegetative state for a decade and a half. Her husband, Michael, wanted to remove her feeding tube and her parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, did not. After several years of legal battles, Republicans in the United States Congress inserted themselves into the family dispute. They did so by issuing a subpoena for Terri Schiavo to testify before Congress. This strategy gave Mrs. Schiavo federal protection as a prospective witness, essentially attempting to halt the removal of her feeding tube.

That short summary cannot do Ms. Schiavo’s case justice. What many of us felt watching Congress and then President George W. Bush insert themselves into a private end of life matter, albeit, at the behest of her parents, was horror. It also left many of us highly motivated to discuss issues associated with living wills, health care proxies and ordinary vs. extraordinary means with our extended family. But it took Rachel Maddow to draw the bright line from today’s Republican objections to healthcare and health insurance reform back to that same party’s role in the Terri Schiavo case and in doing so, spotlight their self serving hypocrisy.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Hillary Was Right

Eleven years ago, back in early 1998, Hillary Rodham Clinton, then First Lady of the United States, first uttered the term: “vast right-wing conspiracy”. Unfortunately, it was said in the context of her husband, then President Bill Clinton’s scandal over his affair with intern Monica Lewinsky and his initial denial and lie. Because her husband did have an affair, Mrs. Clinton was ridiculed as being paranoid.

She wasn’t.

Let’s Take a Deep Breath

Now let’s imagine what we want our health care to be like.

I’ll start.
I want to immediately clone my all-time favorite and best doctor, who unfortunately has now retired. Here’s how I described this excellent physician back in 2007:

Once upon a time, I had as my primary care physician, a doctor of medicine who really was a prince. He always shook my hand and made eye contact. He would always sit down and chat for awhile with my husband and me about anything and everything that was happening in our lives. He believed in all that modern western medicine had to offer and was open to everything else that was well intentioned in this world. He knew and cared about our lives (work, pets, hobbies, extended families, politics, emotions...) and told us about his own. He believed the body was a temple and that it was important for him to treat it with respect. He saved me from at least one major surgery by proceeding with prudence, caution and riding herd over less experienced, less intuitive and less wise doctors. We were partners in my healthcare. Did I mention he had call hours at home every weekday morning for a half an hour? Or the fact that he made house calls to his elderly patients? A prince!

Yes, I want everyone to have a doctor who is one part Marcus Welby, one part Andrew Weil and 100% talented, knowledgeable and, above all, human.

Next, I want affordable health insurance for everyone - that includes prescription drug coverage. Heck, while we’re at it, throw in dental insurance too. Which if you think about it, it is pretty odd that one part of our body has to have separate insurance from all the other parts. Especially since we know that the best medicine treats the whole of the human being. And, yes, I want plenty of choices of insurance coverage too. That choice extends to employers, in particular small business owners, who want to offer health insurance coverage to their employees, but don’t want the premiums to suck up all their profit and stifle their growth.

After discussions with a family member who is a primary care physician, I know I also want state of the art, computerized medical records. I want the doctors (as described above) to be able to glance down at a laptop and pull up their patient’s prescription history, allergies, lab work - the whole nine yards. I want them all to have the ultrasounds, X-Rays, EEGs and any other test results and specialists’ reports accessible through that same laptop. That should cut down on repetitive and duplicative paperwork on the part of not only doctors but patients as well.

I want my 85 year old Mom and all her contemporaries to keep their current Medicare coverage. Streamlining it to improve it and provide higher quality, less cumbersome and less expensive care would be great. Thinking about elderly relatives, after having spent many hours with family members discussing ordinary versus extraordinary means and all aspects of end of life care, I know not all families are prepared for these conversations. So encouraging folks to have a conversation with their doctor about a living will and health care proxies and having that sort of office visit covered by insurance is a very good idea.

What I really want is a level playing field. I don’t want any negative implications of geography, previous health conditions, education or income to be impediments to affordable, accessible health care. Nor do I want the reverse of those circumstances to provide charmed access for a select few.

Lastly, I also want to clone the brilliant care givers who took care of Chuck’s Dad in his last year, so everyone could be so compassionately attended to in their final days. But I think even my imagination is beggared by that impossibly high standard.

What do you want?

Puppets, Sheep & Big Money

The recent insanity over healthcare and health insurance reform has left me mute with anger and frustration. Unfortunately, I think that’s exactly what the lobbyists, health insurance companies and right-wing ideologues, mouthpieces, pundits and wingnuts want. The shouters are being manipulated like puppets and carted around like sheep to town hall style meetings, with the stated goal to disrupt. Disruption is not discourse. Disruption is a tactic. This disruption is being fomented by the same ilk who changed “estate tax” to “death tax”. They are taking the thinnest of threads and weaving fantasy fabrics designed to terrify. And they are outright lying - repeatedly, with malice and for their own aggrandizement.

A genuine town meeting is practically a sacred institution. It is a fundamental, hands on, democratic process which requires respect, courage and patience. (Here’s my recent take on our town meetings.) The occasions when congressional representatives come home to their districts and conduct town hall style meetings is a terrific opportunity for voters to speak directly to their senators or representatives and vice versa. So the fact that these sheep and puppets are being brought in to those meetings just to disrupt, dissolve and disintegrate them is deeply offensive to me.

There was a recent article in Mother Jones which addresses the matter and highlights the grave risks if the puppet masters/sheepherders prevail. (Thanks to Jim of Notes to Leicester for the heads up.)

And here is a recent video report from Rachel Maddow showing some of the deep pocketed groups behind all of the lies and disruption. (Or you can view it below.)

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

I Don’t Have Words...

But it's in a good way - I think.
It’s very strange - but worth a look.
Oh, and I hope I never end up there!

Ready?
O.K. here you go...

P.S. Remember to click on “Older Entries” at the bottom of the screen.

Quality

A brief rant:
One should not use the word quality alone when one wishes to praise someone or something. In such instances the word quality requires a modifier, such as high or good or excellent.
Thank you.

Hold The Lemons Please!

Things have gotten a little busy around here. All is well, but I am feeling distracted and somewhat off track. My To-Do list grows longer despite a respectable number of cross outs and tomorrow looks to be more of the same. Mostly it’s life’s hiccups intervening. For example, overnight the freezer partially defrosted. We somehow managed to leave the freezer door slightly ajar. Because it had to have happened just before we walked out of the kitchen for the last time and headed off to bed (upstairs at the opposite end of the house), we never heard the beeping alarm. We were very fortunate in that not too much was a total loss, even though the compost pile did get a sizable donation. And when we found the frozen fruit had defrosted but was still crunchy cold, I made smoothies for breakfast. Boy, that sounds a lot like “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade”, but it is what happened!


P.S. I know I’ve been remiss in responding to comments. I love being part of the conversation, so I look forward to catching up soon!

The New G.I. Bill

The first G.I. Bill was approved in 1944 and contained benefits for returning veterans including education, unemployment and loans for homes and small businesses.

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs has announced that the new G.I. Bill (sometimes referred to as the “Post 9/11” G.I. Bill) is now up and running. You can go directly to the V.A. site here.

As an adjunct, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) has put together The New G.I. Bill.org, a website designed to help folks figure out the smoothest path to access the new benefits.

Do You Journal?

I used to. I kept a gratitude journal which truly was transformative. Focusing on the positive, every single day, no matter how infinitesimal that good thing was, helped me haul myself out of deep blue funk. I also wrote a poem a day for several years, which really was a journal in verse form. But since I began blogging back in November of 2006, my pen and paper journal has turned into bits and bytes. I miss the tactile, tangibility of my notebooks. Being prone to “all or nothing” thinking though, I’ve been reluctant to dive back into daily journaling. Enter two nifty, “low impact” ideas from Gretchen Rubin of The Happiness Project and The Happiness Project Toolbox.
: : First: The One-Sentence Journal. Simply jot down one sentence each day. You can even pick a theme: gratitude, dreams, books, things your kids say - whatever - it’s your journal.
: : Second: A Calendar Date Journal. In a fresh, fat, lined notebook, dedicate each page to a day of the year. Your entries on a given day will be by year. Example:
September 1
2009 - Celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary at Legal Seafoods.
2010 - Celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary at Legal Seafoods. Are we in a rut?
2016 - Today is our 25th Wedding Anniversary - How did we get so darn lucky?
Get it? It’s a long term project, but how neat it will be to look back on any given day to see the ups and downs, ins and outs across the decades.

For all the Do-It-Yourself-ers reading this, check out this idea for a handmade journal.

Digitally inclined? It isn’t the same as pen and paper, but if you’re an Apple user checkout Circus Ponies' software called NoteBook.

$20.09

Worcester Restaurant Week has begun! You can have a three course dinner at any of more than 40 participating restaurants for $20.09 per person. The special menus are available from August 3rd to the 14th. Click here to see which restaurants are involved and follow the individual links for each establishment. Some places have included links to their special $20.09 dinner menu items. And some restaurants will also be running lunch specials during the same period.

Thanks to Destination Worcester for their Twitter Alert.

Calico & Creme & Pizza

I just checked and was quite surprised to find that I have never posted about Calico and Creme. It’s a sweet, family run, seasonal restaurant on Williamsville Road in Hubbardston. Donald and Elaine McKay, proprietors for more than a quarter century, are perhaps best known for their homemade ice cream and frozen yogurt. But their pizza is scrumptious too. Occasionally, if you load it up with toppings, the very center of the handmade crust can be a bit soft, but the “pizza bones” (outer crust) are always crisp and chewy. What really makes the pizza memorable though is the red sauce. It has a deep, tangy, tomato flavor and is rich with garlic. During their off season, on a cold winter’s night, we have been known to be nearly overcome by cravings for a Calico and Creme pizza.

We thought you should know that.

: : Update: Calico & Creme will be closing for the season very early this year. Get your fill before the end of Labor Day weekend, because it is going to be a long winter.

Bon Voyage!

Our niece Kate is off to Peru! It’s an amazing trip which will include a visit to Machu Picchu and then the Amazon River. Her Nana is storming the heavens to insure a safe journey and we are all wishing her well. Sure hope she has a very large capacity memory card for her camera!

Joy Begets Good

Remember Jill and Kevin, those two wild and crazy kids who, along with their friends, brought so much joy, to so many via their wedding entrance video? Well, they have found a way to do something else very special. At last count, their video had been viewed more than 13 million times. In response to all the publicity, they created a simple webpage. The song they chose for their processional was Chris Brown’s “Forever”. Brown recently pled guilty to assaulting his girlfriend Rihanna. So in light of this one discordant juxtaposition, Jill and Kevin have invited visitors to their webpage to contribute to the Sheila Wellstone Institute (part of the late Paul & Sheila Wellstone’s Wellstone Action!.org) which works to “ensure ending violence against women and children is a national priority”.

Nicely done Jill and Kevin.