Plan B

Hearing about this (see also: this) all day has my stomach in knots.  I agree with the author of the Slate piece that "The only reason to keep these restrictions in place is to force pregnancy on unwilling minors as punishment for having sex, and just accept the impregnated rape victims as collateral damage. "

Yes, that's exactly what Sebelius is doing...ensuring that this medication will not be available to girls under 17 years old unless their parent is super understanding and also an M.D.   It's bullshit on the highest level.

And this quote from Obama disheartens me:  "He said Sebelius decided 10- and 11-year-olds should not be able to buy the drug "alongside bubble gum or batteries" because it could have an adverse effect if not used properly. He said "most parents" probably feel the same way."

THIS IS TRUE OF JUST ABOUT EVERY SINGLE OVER THE COUNTER DRUG:  PAIN RELIEVERS, ALLERGY MEDICINE, SLEEP AIDS...If they are not used properly, they could ALL have adverse effects.

I'm sorry to yell but I'm just that pissed.

Denying victims of rape, abuse or just young people that make a fucking mistake (it happens- condoms break, people forget to take pills, etc.) a safe, easy way to prevent unwanted pregnancy is Wrong with a capital W. 



Just....Grrrrr.

Yep, I'm Terrified. With a capital T.

Ho-lee-shit.  The coverage of the Iowa straw poll makes me want to gouge my own eyes out with a spoon.  All the candidates literally scare the ever loving shit out of me.

Exhibit A:  This woman.

Picture from here

There are no words.

Exhibit B:  And this man.

Photo credit here

Abject terror.  *Shudder*



Thank the universe, we have Rachel Maddow to remind us that the straw poll is a total racket.

I loves her.

And now, before my head explodes, I'm going to brew some green tea, hug my knees to myself and watch a Woody Allen movie, repeating the mantra "its going to be ok.  It's going to be ok."

Isn't it?

Crush of the Day

Don't know how many of you are watching the healthcare debates...honestly, I've tuned in here and there but am in no way glued to it. I know how strongly I feel about it, i.e, that we desperately need reform, very PRO public option but wary of requiring people to carry insurance and I just get frustrated watching all the rhetoric spin 'round and around the media.


But in reading other blogs and news stories about the issue, I came across this fantastic clip of Rep. Anthony Weiner, D-NY letting the house HAVE it. (FYI, he gets 'disciplined' a couple times but then really lets loose after that.) Love it.




Via Shakesville

Protect the Executives!

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

They should try this as an Enhanced Interrogation Technique. Seriously.

Breaking news:

I had surgery on my left leg for varicose veins. I KNOW, RIGHT!?!!? I am TRULY an 80 year old woman in a 32 (gulp) year old body. Want the deets? Of COURSE you do. (Stop reading if you are easily disgusted, have a weak stomach or are generally a pansy.)

I went in last Thursday to have a "procedure" done that I have been agonizing about for the last month. My argument with myself went something like this: "Do I? Don't I?..... Yes my veins cause me daily pain, yes I've had blood clots in them...and yeah, they are super ugly and make me feel like an old lady...But... Even though I've met my deductible, it will be expensive as shit..... and not to mention the greater question of the PAIN?!?!"

Needless to say, the vain (haha! I am so funny) part of me and the part that was tired of the first step out of bed every morning hurting like a mothereffer won out. The doctor's office, so bright and clean and shiny and billed as a 'medical spa' lured me in with their promises of 'minimally invasive' and 'very cosmetic results' and boy I was a sucker. I was told that most people just relax and "go to sleep" during the "procedure." THESE WERE THEIR EXACT WORDS.

The thing was outpatient, and done under local anesthetic. WHY this is, I have no farking idea because I was about to embark upon one of, if not THE most awful medical/bodily experience of my life and this is coming from a person who had an ENTIRE HUMAN BABY WITH (ALMOST) NO PAIN MEDS OF ANY KIND. AND many tattoos. Let me tell you- varicose vein surgery is worse.

It started innocently enough- they gave me an Rx for a Xan@x and some cream to numb up my leg (only the upper thigh and in retrospect, it didn't really seem to work. Like, at all.) No problem. Makes sense. This, however, lured me into a false sense of calm and well being that flew out the window once the NUMEROUS injections to supposedly numb my leg began. I'm talking many, many injections. Each one hurt like hell. And the whole time, I am basically blindfolded because they are using a laser on my thigh so I have no earthly idea what the fuck is going on because I can't see for shit and all I hear is the FASCINATING discussion of what dog foods are best for freaking Portuguese water dogs and they are going on as if I'm not even in the room wondering what the HELL THEY ARE DOING TO MY LEG!

Then the tugging began. As in they were literally cutting my leg open and tugging the vein out. They did this in about 12 different spots up and down my leg. It was disgusting and horrible and I am Never. Doing. That. Again. The only thing that got me through with any shred of sanity still intact was that I had the presence of mind to bring my Zune along and had KaiserCartel cranked after I realized that they weren't going to tell me what was going on.

And now, I'm left with a poor, bruised, cut up appendage that Dr. Frankenstein would be quite proud of and instructions to wear compression stockings for two weeks and not do anything that will break a sweat a solid inner conviction that freedom from varicose veins cannot POSSIBLY be worth what I just put myself through.

I think the lesson here is, to paraphrase a favorite film: Beauty is PAIN. Anyone who says differently is selling something. Like stupid varicose vein surgery.

The end.



* * * * * * * * * * *

Oh, and President Obama gave a speech for schoolkids and the world did NOT come to a screeching, zombie-ridden halt? WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!?!

Yeah, Pretty Much.

Hello! Its Tuesday Morning! (Can I PLEASE Go Back to Bed Now?)

Some observations, in no particular order or importance:

1. Microwave s'mores are sort of like nicotine gum - will satisfy a strong craving but are no where NEAR as good as the real thing.

2. I found myself looking in the mirror this morning wondering if instead of making feeble attempts to hide my dark circles with concealer, I should rather embrace them and start a whole new pale, dark-circled beauty trend. Sort of a 30-something mom meets heroin chic look?

3. WTF is up with the rule that says my hair/make-up/outfit that looks super cute in the bathroom mirror at home, looks shitty and half-assed in the mirror in the Ladies room at work? Seriously.

4. True Blood is completely, totally fucking ridiculous. And I still watch every week. "Sook-eh...Ah em Vampahr!" " Oh, Beel! Ah ken hear people's thowts! Eet sucks but ah'm so horny!" So awful, but so entertaining.

5. Why is the health care thing so contentious? Maybe I'm naive but what we have is OBVIOUSLY not working and yet people are digging their heels in, crying "socialism!" and generally being obstinate little shits about it. I don't know...I don't have any brilliant commentary...I just want Washington to work shit out so that people, ALL people have access to quality health care regardless of their financial status. My little brother having to declare bankruptcy because of his skiing accident is fucking ludicrous.

6. I can't stop listening to Bad Religion. Its the soundtrack of my summer. Especially this song.

Snippets

1. Cheney. OMG puke. The more that comes out on him, the more the fact that that creep is from my state just makes me sick. He was bad in office and he's bad out. Gag.

Phew. Glad that's off my chest.

2. My mom came to visit last week. We had a lovely time excepting that 2 days into her trip, she tore a ligament in her ankle and spent the week on crutches and in pain. She still insisted on watching my kid, however, which saved us a buttload of money that we would have normally spent on daycare. She and Otto had such an amazing time together that I was glad she still felt up to it, despite her injury. Yesterday (the first day sans Nana), Otto woke up and immediately asked for her. It broke my heart a little to remind him that we had taken her to the airport so she could ride an airplane back to her home. His response was: "Mah find Nana airport. Mah go get her." Sob.

3. Back to Mom's visit, we had a great day, Saturday, shuffling around the Denver Zoo (mom was in a wheelchair) and the kiddo loved getting to see all the animals and whatnot- so much that he didn't nap until we got back in the car around 4pm. The coolest thing we saw was a baby giraffe nursing from his mom. Otto was so fascinated! And so was I, to be honest. Talk about breastfeeding in public :-)

4. I'm getting super, royally pissed off because all winter I look so forward to riding my bike to work in the summer. This summer, they are doing so much stupid construction around my workplace that I have to ride WAY out of my way and leave my house at the mother effin' buttcrack of dawn and WHY CAN'T IT JUST BE EASY FOR ME TO SAVE GAS AND GET IN SHAPE BY RIDING MY BIKE TO WORK?!?!?!? Stupid.

5. I guess that's it for now...We just keep on keepin' on...live one day at a time, enjoy the time we have together as family and the time we have alone to our thoughts because there are way to few hours in the day and OMG I'm fucking exhausted.

Peace.

In which I (probably) bore you to tears

Don't really feel like I have a whole heckuva lot to say today other than a probably very dry report on our long weekend. So if you fall asleep and/or need to hop off to check huff post or whatever, I completely understand.**

You've been warned.

Saturday was Tattoo Day! The husband got me a tattoo for Mother's Day. My appointment was on Saturday afternoon in a town about an hour away, so a girlfriend and myself drove down and turned it into a little girl's day out complete with greasy pizza and beer. It was great fun and I LOVE my new art. Love it. A+ to the hubs for a great Mother's Day gift.

Sunday was spent wishing we could go outside but being stuck indoors because of rain and cold. Not done: yard work, gardening, washing of automobiles...We did, however, accomplish some housework that sorely needed to be done so I suppose that's ok. Still, I would have loved to be outside, with my hands in the dirt.

Yesterday, Mem Day, was again cold and rainy. We had an engagement with friends involving BBQ, which proved to be a challenge and required a umbrella placed strategically above the grill to keep the coals alive. It all turned out OK and instead of a backyard garden party, we hung out inside eating burgers, drinking beer and listening to Devo. I can think of worse ways to spend a legal holiday.

And now, here we are again in the middle of a work week, the only consolation being that it is a short one. Plus, I'm still riding the new tattoo high and keep looking at my arm when the new ink catches my eye. Love that.



**Really my weekend was not boring- new tattoo, crazy rainy day party...I think its more that I am feeling a bit shellshocked and worn out today and am therefore sucking it at the whole writing thing.

Plus...PLUS, I'm really PISSED OFF at the California Supreme Court right now, which I'm sure is clouding my mind. Douchebags.

Better Know My District

I didn't vote for her. But she held her own. Sort of.

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Better Know a District - Wyoming's At-Large - Cynthia Lummis

Colbert Report Full Episodes
Political Humor

Rap Battle
NASA Name Contest

Oh No You DIDN'T!

Oh yes we did.

Congratulations, Mr. President.

Congratulations, Everyone.

Woot!!

ETA: Did Aretha Franklin's performance remind anyone of this poem? Moving.

On Marriage

I'm sure by now, you guys know how I feel about GLBT rights and marriage. As in YES PLEASE. But anyway.

This Newsweek Article provides some interesting food for thought...Go read it. I'll wait.

Ok good. I think this section is particularly interesting:

If the bible doesn't give abundant examples of traditional marriage, then what are the gay-marriage opponents really exercised about? Well, homosexuality, of course—specifically sex between men. Sex between women has never, even in biblical times, raised as much ire. In its entry on "Homosexual Practices," the Anchor Bible Dictionary notes that nowhere in the Bible do its authors refer to sex between women, "possibly because it did not result in true physical 'union' (by male entry)."
The Bible does condemn gay male sex in a handful of passages. Twice Leviticus refers to sex between men as "an abomination" (King James version), but these are throwaway lines in a peculiar text given over to codes for living in the ancient Jewish world, a text that devotes verse after verse to treatments for leprosy, cleanliness rituals for menstruating women and the correct way to sacrifice a goat—or a lamb or a turtle dove. Most of us no longer heed Leviticus on haircuts or blood sacrifices; our modern understanding of the world has surpassed its prescriptions. Why would we regard its condemnation of homosexuality with more seriousness than we regard its advice, which is far lengthier, on the best price to pay for a slave?

Indeed...it does seem that people pick and choose what biblical passages apply to them and what doesn't...not only on this issue but also on others. Maybe I have a skewed perspective as someone who has no religious affiliation or inclinations? (I was raised Catholic but left the church as soon as humanly possible- 14yrs old and have never looked back.) I just wonder how someone justifies adhering to passages calling sex between men as an "abomination" but chooses to ignore those about sacrificing goats, having more than one wife, owning slaves, etc....am I missing something here??

One reason

There are about a bazillion reasons that I am happy about the election results, most of which I am sure you can guess. I could go into some of them...I could write again about how I desperately want the war in Iraq to end, about how women's rights now stand a fighting chance. I could list things like alternative energy, the environment, GLBT rights, education, health care...


But the main reason is much closer to me than that. So close in fact, that I woke up this morning with his milky sweet breath on my cheek, his tousled head next to mine on the pillow.

My son's future looks brighter than ever today and I'm savoring the moment.

Yay! us. Yay! U.S.

No, SERIOUSLY!

1. My state sort of SUCKS.

2. My country? Fucking RULES.

Congratulations all of us!

OMFG YOU GUYS

Its finally here. Election Day. Nov. 4th. Thank the powers that be.

I am a nervous wreck.

I didn't' wear my Obama shirt to work because at the last minute I decided it could be considered inappropriate. See what sort of wholly responsible employee I am?

Of course, when I got here (a bit late after voting! woot!) one of my co-workers was wearing a McCain/Palin shirt. Grrr. So I dug around in my bag and found an Obama button. So there.

Anyway, I'm glad that the whole thing is almost over. For better or for worse. But hopefully for better.

One More Day

Enjoy!

My email can beat up your email

I'll admit it: I was already a little crabby when I walked into work this morning. My kid was up at 3:30 am and it took an HOUR to get him back down. Not really sure what was going on there...maybe a new tooth? Who knows. Babies are weird. Anyway. Where was I? Oh, right- I was crabby.

I grabbed a cup of coffee (usually I'm decaf but today was a half-caff type of morning), settled in and checked my email. Innocuously placed among campus wide announcements and cute doggy pictures (thanks, Ma) was an email from a former co-worker. Someone I thought I got along with. Someone I KNOW I share certain political views with.

At first glance, I assumed it was probably just a greeting (Heyhowareyouitsbeenawhile type of a thing) or a silly forward (FRIENDZRAWESOMEforwardto10friendsorsufferHORRIBLEBADLUCK) but I was wrong: What was lurking inside this email almost caused me to spew half-caff with half n' half (say THAT 5 times fast) all over my keyboard. This email was the most vile, offensive, completely ridiculous drivel I've ever received in a personal email. And while I hesitate to post too much of it here because it is SO INCREDIBLY RIDICULOUS AND OFFENSIVE, I'll give you just a small idea of the content.

It was entitled "Why I vote Democrat" and included such gems as:

I'm voting Democrat because I believe people who can't tell us if it will rain in two or three days, can now tell us the polar ice caps will disappear in ten years if I don't start riding a bicycle, build a windmill or inflate my tires to
proper levels.

And:

I'm voting Democrat because it's alright to kill millions of babies as long as we keep violent, convicted murderers on death row alive.

And this one:

I'm voting Democrat because the government knows how to raise children better than parents do.

It went on and on and on. If printed out, it would be 4 pages. 4 PAGES! I'll have to admit: My first instinct was to fire off some sort of scathing reply. Something to the tune of:

I'm voting Republican because I’d rather completely destroy the landscape, the ozone layer and my own lungs than drive a smaller car or get off my fat ass and ride a bike or recycle a can.

Or:

I’m voting Republican because I in no way understand the issue of Reproductive rights. I've never known anyone with preeclampsia (and don’t even know what that is). I’m “Pro-Life” but do not want any of my money to go to help lower the rate of unwanted pregnancies, help single mothers make ends meet, take care of special needs children,or provide health insurance for the millions of uninsured children in this country.

I didn't of course. And I never would. I just ignored the email, and went about my work while secretly fuming. I know I should just shrug it off. There are a lot of dipshits out there right? But I hate it that this sort of baiting bullshit circulates and that people actually buy it. As strongly held as my beliefs and views are, I would never circulate or forward anything like the stuff that was in this email. And even if you have different opinions than someone else, especially someone you KNOW personally, get a long with, go drinking with...stay respectful, you know?

How do you respond to stuff like this? Especially if it comes from people you are close to? Just ignore it? Rise above?

Get Off My Lawn!

Is it just me or did McSame just come off as a crotchety old curmudgeon last night? He got some zingers in there, sure, but the overall impression was of a doddering old man.

Here's to hoping the polls are right about Obama's lead.

Also, something interesting I heard on NPR (sorry, no time to hunt for a link) is that polls can only include those with landlines...not the many people (like us) who only have cell phones...

Hrm.

Friday Funny

Enjoy.

(A helpful chart regarding last night's debate.)

Tee hee.

Lame!

So the debate was a bit disappointing, no? I mean there were no obviously stupid comments, no name-calling, no crying. Well, I guess there was a little crying but it wasn't from her. No fun!

All kidding aside, I commend Palin's coaches- nice job. While she did not have many direct answers or specific examples, she did not make an ass of herself. Go get yourself a Jager shot.

Joe Biden, however, kicked ass. He was truly interviewing for a job- answering questions directly and citing specific examples. He did a wonderful job of sticking to the issues and contrasting McCain's views with Obama's. I could actually imagine him taking over the Oval Office, should the need arise.

I especially enjoyed the exchange regarding same-sex marriage. He was on point and when he implied that McCain/Palin shared the same stance as he and Obama, Palin's "oh shit" look was priceless.

A clip: (the best moment happens around 2:35)



Of course, Obama/Biden support "Civil Unions" giving same-sex couples the same constitutionally protected rights afforded married couples.

*************

In other news, the snot is BACK and I'm currently stuck at work wishing like hell for my couch and a cup of tea.

*************

And the Husband just IM'd me and said the bailout passed.

Strange times, indeed.