Retreading
Why is it that behaviour that pissed us off in high school is something we emulate as adults?
Case in point: those kids who were *so* not in the In-Crowd — nerds, geeks, freaks — are the quickest to imitate the “cliques” they were excluded from. Only the out crowd names get changed. From “geek”, “freak” and “nerd” to “mundane”, “suits” and “normals”.
Once an Ape, apparently we’re all still Apes. It’s that pecking order thing.
New member of the family…
My oldest nephew and his wife just had a baby boy, named Jayden…this makes *three* Jaydens I know of now, among family and friends. Must be a very popular name, but I wonder what the nicknames will be. “Jay” is the only one that occurs to me, but I can’t see my new great nephew being called that, though, as his half-brother is named Jayce. Families — what a wonder.
I think of him as my internet nephew — I reconnected with my nephew Rob and met his wife Noelle on Facebook, after nagging my brother to get a Facebook account. Through that, I also got to see my niece’s daughter for the first time, for all she’s 18 now.
All I need to do now is get my WoW-obsessed sister to get on Facebook, so I can see *her* kids.
Hi ho, Hi ho, it’s off to work I go…
in a couple of months anyway. I’ve just gulped and plunked down the cash for a new computer. It’s a Toshiba Satellite (thanks, Shawn, for the reccy!) and fully capable of the tasks to be put to it. Now, after three days, I’m starting to look at what else the new beast will need…full MS Office, Photoshop…?
I already know what other hardware I’ll need, and I’m hoping to get most of it secondhand (to be replaced as I start to earn some dosh). Light table, at least one external hard drive and possibly two, a printer/copier, a scanner…lots of stuff for a biz I think will be useful and attractive to people — archiving family histories from photos and documents. More later as I hash it all out. Wish me luck!
The End of the Year Review, Part Two
This has been an interesting year: In his second year, The American People have declared that they don’t like Obama or his Democratic Party. And now the Republicans say that all they’ll do for the remaining two years is keep Obama from being re-elected. Oh, and to hell with the unemployed Americans, they’re just collateral damage. Those folks lost their jobs due to and in most cases, under the Republican President Bush.
We also found out some new things this past year. We learned that money can be dumped into political platforms, legislation and politicians in other states to further out of state agendas. Yes, Kohk brothers, I’m talking about you. We learned that a Corporation (pick one, any one…) can act as a private citizen, and throw millions behind any legislation or candidate which will support or can be coerced to do their bidding. Never mind that few voters have millions to do this. Way to go, SCOTUS!
The one question I don’t see anyone asking is how Big Business can do so very well (having completely recovered their previous stock market levels) and yet so few people have been rehired. I’m beginning to think that Bush’s parting shot was to eliminate “inconvenient” workers, who no longer fit the corporate vision, without a thought as to what those folks will do now. I suppose if the Corporations and Big Business wait long enough, those “surplus” workers will just fade away? A whole generation of lost potential, from workers and more importantly, their children, who will not see their potential as citizens, will be less educated, and less able to contribute to our Great Society. And that’s just the way the Corporations want it.
The End of the Year Review, Part One
2009 is on the way out. It’s been a year of firsts, and hopefully, some lasts, and no one seems to be sad to see it go.
We have had almost a year with our first African American president (born in HAWAII!), Barack Obama, who has disappointed in some ways, and has offered the change he campaigned on in others. He has persevered with a couple of his promises: Health care reform is almost done, and he has been pushing educational reform. Some of the stepbacks are due to the recession he was handed. [Hello! That mess started at least a year before Obama was sworn in and was made a bigger mess by all of Bush's bailouts for Wall Street before he left office. Look at a calendar!]
Obama seems to be serious about closing Guantanamo. He has turned out to be not-so-much-change in the overseas military situation, however. He recently signed off on another “troop surge”, although to his credit he fought it as long as he could. Obama is still seeking an exit strategy, and a cut off date for when the troops will come home at last. When it happens is another thing.
My biggest disappointment is Obama’s declining funding for NASA, which will leave us behind and probably unable to catch up with the Chinese, the ESA and the other space faring nations. Private enterprise, this is the time to break out of your supposed NASA “yoke” and go for it. Are you listening??
The hopefully-to-be-lasts: Extreme lack of cooperation on the political front! Congress can only get worse if we have a shooting on the floor of the House or the Senate. And please don’t tell me who you would want shot, I’ve got a list of my own. The flagrant misrepresentation of fact has got to go, too. The FCC should start fining the most egregious lies, if they’re broadcast. In print, not so much, as “middle America” seems to get all the news they want or “need” from TV/cable.
Three years to go, and we’ll just have to see far along we get.
It’s a New Day
Well, we have him — the new President that so many have pinned their hopes on. One who has bravely promised Change, and I believe will honestly try to accomplish it.
Obama will be the most scrutinized President in our history, and his path will be crowded with those who would slander and libel him, just to make it seem that Bush was competent after all, and not the abject failure he proved to be.
I hope the voters remember how bad Bush was for the economy, for diplomacy and for the rights we had enjoyed, when 2010-2012 rolls around. Obama has a *lot* to do and his progress will seem like it was too slow — no matter how much he eventually does.
The attempts to “modify” Bush’s track record have already started — one well-known pundit has already said “Poor George Bush, he inherited a recesiion and 9-11…” Uh, sworn in on January 20, 2001, while 9-11 was, well, on September 11, 2001. Doesn’t September 2001 come *after* January 2001? I certainly thought so.
As for the inherited “recession”: — when you have a $140+ billion surplus, it’s called a recession now? I see, kinda like “redundancy is the new career path”.
Yeah. Like that.
Best Pressie Ever!
I got the niftiest Christmas present this year — a trip back home! My friend flew me back to L.A., to house-sit for *her* friend, while she’s out of the country for 5 weeks.
It hasn’t quite turned out like I thought it would. Someone whom I thought would race to visit me didn’t bother. The house I’m sitting is *remote*. I can’t get any bars — no mobile signal — up here, and can’t get out of the area to visit on my own, since it’s 3 miles to the nearest bus stop. I could take a cab to that stop but, oh yeah, did I mention I’m doing this gig for free?
Still, it’s been lovely being with people who *like* me! I’m so sad (and feeling very anxious!), now that the month is about up. I go back this weekend, to the uncomfortable living arrangement I’ve had for the last year, to be glowered at and nagged. As soon as my disability status is settled, if they decide in my favor, I can resume my life, albeit in considerably reduced circumstances. If it doesn’t settle out my way, I’ll be *really* homeless.
But, I’ve had fun, that’s the important thing!
It was supposed to be *better*!
I thought when I got this new old laptop up and running that it would be better! WordPress still loads like shit. Probably not their fault, but still…
So, maybe now I can get some reading and posting in over at my pal az’s blog, Casa Az ! At the least I hope to get Skype up and running.
Also, in preparation for the ending of Couch Tour ’08, I’ve been researching whether there are any blogs on surviving being homeless out there… I’m amazed at how many there are! Maybe there’ll be another blog soon, you never know — could come in handy, if the world economy tanks. Or, maybe I’ll win the lotto or find that nice little job I’ve been looking for…a girl can dream, can’t she?
Change as change.
Things change, and sometimes they change in directions you could never foresee.
In the past year I’ve gone from a resident of the Los Angeles area — on disability, then on unemployment, then employed (for all of three weeks!) to no income at all, to giving/throwing away 37 years of stuff including the many books from my life as well as my late husband’s (I’m down to 8 boxes of stuff and two very confused cats) – to moving 450 miles north to the San Francisco Bay Area, still unemployed, on to general assistance, and back to employed again (for three weeks…).
Brings new meaning to the phrase, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” I’m considering writing a book, “Feng Shui for the Transitional.”
