I Just Don't Get It...

...But maybe I don't need to.  So, you put your 16 year-old in a boat in January so she can circumnavigate the globe.  Shouldn't she be getting ready for prom and hanging out in the mall with girlfriends, shopping for overpriced jeans that clearly her family can afford?  Why?  I am always amazed at what people can get away with.  Where are the limits? I truly believe thaat the more money you have the more shit you are able to get away with.


     So two "parents" decided that it would be a good idea for their 16 year old to get on a boat alone and sail the globe strictly for the purpose of saying that she did it?  In a lesser income bracket, leaving your 16 year old unattended from January 30 to June 10 would likely lead to charges.  The fact that you left her in a dangerous situation--that would be the adrift-in-the-Indian-Ocean part--would lead to jail time.

     I believe in challenging children.  I believe in encouraging them to be cutting edge and daring.  The thing is, that as a parent, I also put the brakes on when necessary.  I can't really think of a time more necessary than when your kid asks to skip school for a year to  sail around the world--alone. 

     Wealth allows for frivolity.  Frivolity allows for foolishness.  Foolishness never turns out well.  I'm glad Abby is alive and well but what would the authorities have done if she wasn't?  Would their money have been sufficient to insulate them from the fate of other parents who have shown poor judgement?  Do they even believe that this was not the best conceived idea?

     If you have children, hug them.  If you have blessings, count them.  I'm sure Abby's parent are doing just that--well I hope so anyway.  Get out there and get it done.

Rand Paul and Why You Need To Know Him

     So Tea Party people are dancing in the streets with joy in their hearts. Rand Paul is someone that you should get to know.  He may in fact be the harbinger of right-wing things to come.  On the surface who wouldn't love a fresh-faced Midwestern pseudo-intellectual with a recognizable last name?  Now, had I been more tech savvy I would have inserted an audio clip here that says " 'Be afraid, be very afraid' ".

     While Mr. Paul labels himself a "Constitutional conservative", his ideals run more to the reactionary.  He believes that the nation missed the boat on the 1964 Civil Rights Act.  Additionally, and more importantly, he feels that government should not be able to regulate inclusion or discrimination.  If you are a business owner and you desire not to serve (insert minority group here) then as a business owner you should not have to.  Basically, Brown v. Board of Ed. Topeka was a wet dream.  Plessy v. Ferguson would likely be more his speed.


     So, you don't live in Kentucky, and why should you give a shit?  Mainly because he isn't a lone voice.  He is being held up as the face of a new movement in politics.  While many in his party may cringe publicly when he speaks, privately they are right there in the sentiment.  The cringe is not because he thought it but because he said it out loud.  Please note he is no Sarah Palin.  Kentucky ain't Alaska and he's picked up the NY Times for purposes other than wrapping dead fish.  So, take a read and a listen because Mr. Paul may be the wave of a future past.  Pump your fist, pick your hair and get it done.

Testing the Fences

    So a guy tries to blow up a car bomb in Times Square by parking it in the turning lane.  It doesn't blow up.  I commute to work the following day and my hour long trip turns into a two hour nightmare. Lots of police.  Lots of trucks.  Lots of short tempers.  The thing is, even though nothing exploded, the throngs of police and the large guns do not make me feel safe at all.  The reality is that I have never felt less "safe." The reality is that the terrorists are winning. 

     Shoes off at the airport.  Bag checks in the subway.  "See something, Say something."  If the goal of terrorism is to change a particular way of life, then they are succeeding.  If the goal is empathy for an ideology then they are doing worse than ever.  The reality is that most people don't even care about the ideology whose beliefs would allow someone to strap a bomb to themselves and detonate it in a crowded square.  Most people can't fathom believing in something so deeply.

    In the movie "Jurassic Park"  there was a group of dinosaurs that learned that the fences were shut off in certain places at certain times.  They tested them by having one dinosaur jump at them.  Well, voila, one day it worked and they got out.  I think its an effective metaphor for this last "attack".  The reality is that at some point--someone truly invested in causing mayhem and destruction will do so.  We will have a personal, local and national response.  Be vigilant and be safe.  The only thing that will truly stop a terrorist is the understanding that they are railing against something and having an honest dialogue about what "it" is.

   Be safe and get it done.

Milestones, Moments and Mementos

    Originally penned but not posted on 4/17/10. So as I watched my son graduate yesterday, I was both in the moment and in another world.  I was struck by several thoughts.  My first thought was " 'WHERE DID I LEAVE THE DAMN CAMERA?' " then I realized I had one on my phone.  My second and more important thought was that my child has completed the portion of his journey that I am responsible for.  Wow!!!  

 

   As he embarks on a life of firsts, I worry.  Being on your own now is very different than it was for us fortysomethings.  Truth of the matter is, times are hard.  We went out to eat after the graduation ceremony and I was simply stunned at what a good job I did as a single mom.  I paused to wonder what would have been if he had two parents working together--but trust it was a brief and fleeting pause.

    I count myself fortunate that I can count the milestones, moments and mementos.  There are many who are not alive to do so.  I sometimes have to remind myself to not be so lost in the day to day that I forget the "remember when" or vice versa.  I finding my space in a lot ways around a lot of things.  Congrats to everyone who graduated from anything--especialy those who eft the old for the new.  Get it in--and get it done.

On the Journey...

     My mentor always tells me to "find value in the journey" and that the "journey should be respected."  I believe that both those things are true but boy oh boy when you have to live in it it's very different.  For my part, I am always concerned about the "why".  There is something in me that has trouble understanding how and why people invest so much energy in mean-spiritedness.  The flip side of that, is that if you asked someone why they do it, they likely couldn't tell you. 

    Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men.  I always remind myself that people are who and what they are--nothing more nothing less.  The same can also be said of me.  SO, it's pretty clear that my career has now become a job.  I have been assigned to a program whose fundamental philosophy I don't really believe in.  I am on a path that will crush me or I will break free on the other side with a story to tell.  Stay tuned.  Being honest, right now, the journey is winning.

     I want to grow. I can and have grown.  For right now though, I'm struggling.  Some of my struggle is self-inflicted.  I feel I can be and do so much more.  Some of it has to do with how I feel I'm valued.  Now that piece is definitely self-inflicted because at the end of the day, it should only matter that my kids want me, and that Still is cool with Still.  I am considering several things.  I will also say that the madness has also forced me to take a hard look at me.  Am I afraid to step out on my own?  What keeps me in the place I'm in?  Why won't my Spirit meet my resolve halfway?  Is this a sign that this is the moment to step out on faith and consider entrepenuership?  Whatever the case, I'm coming out of this shit with a story to tell.  Put the kids to bed and pull up a chair.  Pray for me, I'm praying for you.  Respect the journey and get it done.

O.K., I'm Back..

    So, it's been a minute, but your girl is back.  It's been a time of uncertainty, discovery and movement.  I have also learned that there are some little things that I love.  While they may seem wrought with frivolity, just rock with me because they bring me joy.  The one thing that I have learned is that when you force movement, and you get it, you need to buckle the fuck up.  For real.  This applies to a lot of things on many levels.  The one thing that I am thankful for is that I now know where I stand--even though it may be in quicksand.

     Forgive me, I digress.  So, some of the simple things that I have come to appreciate over the past few weeks.  I am currently enamored with the expression " 'not a lot--a lot' ".  I can't think of anything that summarizes feelings about issues, situations or experiences more effectively.  The second thing I have come to like is Facebook statuses.  Some of them are enlightening, some funny and some of the comments on statuses that I post are downright hilarious.  I have also come to appreciate the importance of sitting still.  This really works.  I also have remembered why I started blogging in the first place--to find my voice and hear it when need be. 

   So, I'm back, I missed you and I am going to get it done.

When The Go-To Chick Becomes the Chick That's Got To Go...

...the journey can be tough.  So, that would be a fairly accurate of the space I'm in now.  I will only say that it's life between a rock and a very hard place.  As my assignment draws to a close, I had one of the most anti-climactic experiences ever.  I am being reassigned to...drumroll...right where I am at.   Initially, I counted the Gods as cruel or at least humorous.  For my Department's part--let's just that they are less than pleased.

     I love my work.  At one point, I loved my Department and my colleagues.  Now, after advocating for myself, the powers-that-want-to-be are angry.  Clash-of-the-Titans-Zeus-fighting-Hera-while-riding-the-three-headed-dog pissed the hell off.  As is human nature, no one is going to be that pissed and keep it to themselves.  So I'm the object of non-affection.  I had a jawdropping experience with this today.  I get asked a question, I give an answer and boss guy picks up the phone to call for, well I don't know what for, but he called.

    So let the abuse, the abuse of power and the madness begin.  This is going to be one of those tough storms that professionals go or suffer through.  The reality is that I am going to chose the go through as opposed to the suffer through.  So now I'm the object of unaffection.  I am blessed and will stay that way.  I will put my umbrella up and my boots on and keep it moving.  Pray for me.