Monday, November 29, 2010

Why is this still an issue?

Can you honestly believe that LGBT Americans are actually still in this particular battle? For the same, basic, simple right to marry as anybody else?

This may be one of the best rebuttals to the “re-defining marriage” mantra, given by Keith Olbermann:
"I keep hearing this term 're-defining' marriage. If this country hadn’t re-defined marriage, black people still couldn’t marry white people. Sixteen states had laws on the books which made that illegal in 1967. 1967.
The parents of the President-Elect of the United States couldn’t have married in nearly one third of the states of the country their son grew up to lead. But it’s worse than that. If this country had not 're-defined' marriage, some black people still couldn’t marry black people. It is one of the most overlooked and cruelest parts of our sad story of slavery. Marriages were not legally recognized, if the people were slaves. Since slaves were property, they could not legally be husband and wife, or mother and child. Their marriage vows were different: not 'Until Death, Do You Part,' but 'Until Death or Distance, Do You Part.' Marriages among slaves were not legally recognized.
You know, just like marriages today in California are not legally recognized, if the people are gay.

What is this, to you? Nobody is asking you to embrace their expression of love. But don’t you, as human beings, have to embrace… that love? The world is barren enough.
It is stacked against love, and against hope, and against those very few and precious emotions that enable us to go forward. Your marriage only stands a 50-50 chance of lasting, no matter how much you feel and how hard you work.
And here are people overjoyed at the prospect of just that chance, and that work, just for the hope of having that feeling.  With so much hate in the world, with so much meaningless division, and people pitted against people for no good reason, this is what your religion tells you to do? With your experience of life and this world and all its sadnesses, this is what your conscience tells you to do?"
 Marriage & Relationship Recognition
 GLBT
 same sex marriage
 domestic-partnership
 same-sex-relationships
 lgbt

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Third Annual Thanksgiving List

Happy Thanksgiving! Today marks my third annual Thanksgiving list, originally inspired by my bloggy friend.
Just a sampling of the reasons I am thankful.
  • Hope.
  • For Jesus.
  • My washer and dryer.
  • DVR
  • A simple warm house with all the modern conveniences.
  • Unconditional positive regard.
  • A really good meal when I am truly good and hungry.
  • Flowers for no reason.
  • Warm sun in the middle of winter.
  • A good outdoor fire.
  • That there *is* such a thing as falling in love.
  • Laughter!
  • A good book, comfy chair, and latte at Borders.
  • Kind co-workers.
  • My little brothers who always had my back and treated me like a queen.
  • Generosity and genuineness.
  • Music: playing, singing, listening.
  • For my true and loyal friends.
  • My magnificent incomparable son. He has brought only joy to me since the first moment.
  • My health.
  • My TDI that gets 45pmg.
  • A turkey and potatoes already in the fridge ready to cook.
  • Healthy children.
  • For moments of peace in my life.
  • For the “oil jar” never quite running empty.
  • For the vocation that I get to perform.
  • For my tenacity.
  • I am thankful for an excellent quality chiropractor.
  • Thankful for the health insurance to be able to go get needed medical care.
  • I am thankful for excellent hearing.
  •  I’m also thankful for clear sight.
  • I’m thankful to have a job in this economy.
  • My better half. Before whom I had had not experienced unconditional love, devotion and respect.
  • I am thankful for running water.
  • I’m thankful for electricity.
  • I am thankful for grace.
  • For nearly surviving this completely arduous year 2010. 
  • and a bonus thank you… for TUMS!! I am gonna need them after dinner today!

    Tuesday, November 16, 2010

    Time for recess and a nap?

    I saw these artistic frames during my blog travels. These two frames seemed important to highlight right now because of all the stress and distress that has continued to be present in my world during 2010.
    Working so hard to be the adult in the whole mess — to be the one to maintain healthy boundaries — to be the stable presence. And yet feeling so very exhausted by all the many onslaughts of thoughtless boundary breaking and stability threatening events. And wondering “why?” Why am I so exhausted and just plain exasperated? Probably because my inner child is screaming from within me — just hoping for a recess and a nap!
    But alas, in the adult world, that doesn't happen. So, back to work!

    Friday, November 12, 2010

    Breaking the Code

    In my 4 decades on this plant I have learned many things. One of the things I have learned is that when someone signs a letter with some variation of “Regards” what they are really trying to convey before they end their letter is: “f*ck off and f*ck you.”

    Sad, but true… at least the majority of the time. Why do people hide behind benign words to thinly veil their malignant intents? Mostly because they know that the raft of sh*t their true words would reap them is not a hassle they want to deal with (or are brave enough to deal with).

    What is worse than that is when people use their kind or sweet words to get what they want out of people — and then when either they do not get that they wanted — or are just “done”... you can be sure those sweet words take a hairpin curve and turn sour!

    I didn’t understand it when I was a kid and heard the lessons about the tongue being the smallest member of the body but being capable of the greatest damage. I do now.

    Whoever first said “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me” was one of two things: deaf, or as yet unscathed by the double-edged sword of another’s words. Either way the physical wounds of sticks and stones heal long before the emotional wounds of misused words.
    It would be nice if we lived in a world where people accepted self-responsibility and personal accountability for what the words that they put out there do to other people.

    HA! I suppose I may as well be wishing for world peace, or a clean energy source apart from the fossil fuels that contaminated our Oceans in the Gulf during the summer of 2010.

    Saturday, November 6, 2010

    What are they so afraid of?

    Why are people so often afraid of things they do not understand? And furthermore, why do people lash out in anger to mask their fear of the unknown or misunderstood?

    Thursday, November 4, 2010

    Seeing Red

    Well, thanks to the 2010 mid-term elections and all the tea drinking conservatives, you can kiss any change or forward progress in America "Good-bye"!