I've been thinking about running for the Senate. No. Really. Stop laughing. It's not a new thought. While I was in high school, I started campaigning for President. Yes, of the United States of America. People used to ask me if I wanted to be the first woman President, and I would answer, "Nope, the youngest." At the time, I was hoping we would have had a female President before 1996, which was when I had to be elected to beat JFK in the youngest department.
As you can see, I missed that deadline.
These days, I don't want to be President. Damned good thing, eh? Have to keep my dreams somewhat within the stratosphere even if they never will be totally down to earth.
But the problem with running for political office is that I'm too damned honest. Yes, I inhaled. A lot. Many things that were inhalable. But not since 1989. So that's two strikes right there. Honesty and a past.
The thing about a past is that some people can never forgive. That past will always be there, and they will always judge you for what happened in the 1980's. I read recently about an uproar over a Christian person in some political office who actually employed an ex-prostitute. Oh, the Religious had their panties in a twit over that. But to me, it seemed that he was doing the most Christian thing. Jesus didn't hang out with the Religious, after all. So, this political person was not condemned for his past, but his employee's past was apparently communicable.
So don't stand too close to me.
Back in the Nineties, (why weren't our Nineties "Gay"? Oh, sorry. Birdwalking) when I heard about all the problems in public education (and that's another tangent for another day), I said to myself, "Self, if you're not part of the solution..."
No, really. It happened just like that. I became a teacher to help right a wrong. Whose wrong? It didn't matter. I believe so very strongly in a free public education, and I believed that our children deserved the best. SO I became the best teacher I could and an advocate for my students who lived in poverty.
Ah. Now you get it, eh? We have a big problem with our government. Not only that, but it's a real problem and not just a fictitious problem created by politicians. In fact, it's a real problem created by politicians. Politicians are the problem. And, if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem. Now, I could vote and consider my job done, but I'd still only see politicians getting elected.
A politician is a person who makes political office their career. It's a great career move if you can make it. The salary is way up there and the benefits are awesome. One turn in in our congress, and you're set for life.
The problem with having only politicians in political office is that everything becomes a career move. We saw that clearly in the last Texas legislative session. A government made up of politicians is selfish. A government made up of politicians caters to the big bucks and the most publicity so they can stay in office and make big bucks, too.
I have come up with a very simple solution to the problem: Political office should be a public service, not a high paying career. A Senator shouldn't make more than a school teacher, fire fighter or police officer. THEIR salaries and retirements ought to be on the line. Think about the beauty of this. If political offices were filled with public servants instead of politicians, then they would attract people who care about the public they serve. They would be dedicated to solving our problems and making sure our country is running smoothly.
In order for this to happen, someone has to take the first step. So I thought I'd run for Senate and introduce the bill. What would I do with all that extra salary? Donate it back to people who need it.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Saturday, July 9, 2011
I'm Baaaack
Sometime ago, I announced my intention to blog once a week. Crap happened, but I'm back. And this time I have an iPad.
My friends and family will know that last year, I asked for an iPad for my birthday, and he gave me a divorce instead. Or, as Mom says, "Instead, he gave you something really wonderful." This year, with my student loan, I got my own iPad. Even better: I was patient and pre-ordered an iPad2.
(For concerned tax payers out there, this was not a frivolous use of my student loan. I desperately needed a new laptop for school. I wanted an iPad. Therefore, my iPad is my new laptop for school. Totally within the guidelines of responsible student loan spending.)
I love my iPad. I have used it for schoolwork. I'm outside with it in the late mornings (after vineyard work) when I write and the evenings when I don't, so it's filled with video of my constant companions: Moon, Baba Wawa, Penny and the Booman. I've used it to edit and post some of those videos on YouTube. I am using it to write one of my novels, which happens to be set on a ranch, so the setting where I set myself and my iPad in the morning is conducive to the creative process.
We're all out here right now in the shade of a 150 year-old oak tree:
One of my favorite aps is 2Do. It's a handy to-do list that can be used to set up repeating actions on certain days. It comes with pretty colored category tabs, fun buttons and prioritizing. I have made the priorities my own though, and so they are not a matter of priority at all. High priority is what I use for one-time things that need doing. Medium is for weekly chores that automatically pop up on their day of the week. Low is for monthly chores. None is for the daily stuff like dishes and litterboxes. (If I could figure out how, I'd change the titles from "None" to "Daily," etc., but that's not a high enough priority for me to take the time to figure it out.) Starred items are tricky little boogers. They never go away. You can touch the box on the screen to indicate it's done, and the line gets drawn, but then it stays there. I like things to disappear from the Today tab. So I only used the star for writing. Weekdays are for the novels (I'm writing two at the moment--it was five, but I've narrowed it down to two--one on the iPad, and one on my office computer in the afternoons.) And as of yesterday, the weekends are for blogging. As soon as I push "Publish Post," I get to check it off my 2Do list.
And even though this one has been mostly about nothing, I do have a lot on my mind. It has been quite a year for me, and I have a bunch of topics coming soon, like "Being Catty" and "Stop Telling Me to Build My Barn" and "Oops! I Inhaled. A Lot." And of course, there are Penny stories and Booman tales, along with the escapades of my border collie, Moon, and my lamb, Baba Wawa.
I had some folks tell me recently that they missed my stories on the Bengals-L Yahoo list. I'm still kind of there, but mostly you'll find me on FaceBook or right here. Uncensored.
My friends and family will know that last year, I asked for an iPad for my birthday, and he gave me a divorce instead. Or, as Mom says, "Instead, he gave you something really wonderful." This year, with my student loan, I got my own iPad. Even better: I was patient and pre-ordered an iPad2.
(For concerned tax payers out there, this was not a frivolous use of my student loan. I desperately needed a new laptop for school. I wanted an iPad. Therefore, my iPad is my new laptop for school. Totally within the guidelines of responsible student loan spending.)
I love my iPad. I have used it for schoolwork. I'm outside with it in the late mornings (after vineyard work) when I write and the evenings when I don't, so it's filled with video of my constant companions: Moon, Baba Wawa, Penny and the Booman. I've used it to edit and post some of those videos on YouTube. I am using it to write one of my novels, which happens to be set on a ranch, so the setting where I set myself and my iPad in the morning is conducive to the creative process.
We're all out here right now in the shade of a 150 year-old oak tree:
 |
| My Outdoor Office |
One of my favorite aps is 2Do. It's a handy to-do list that can be used to set up repeating actions on certain days. It comes with pretty colored category tabs, fun buttons and prioritizing. I have made the priorities my own though, and so they are not a matter of priority at all. High priority is what I use for one-time things that need doing. Medium is for weekly chores that automatically pop up on their day of the week. Low is for monthly chores. None is for the daily stuff like dishes and litterboxes. (If I could figure out how, I'd change the titles from "None" to "Daily," etc., but that's not a high enough priority for me to take the time to figure it out.) Starred items are tricky little boogers. They never go away. You can touch the box on the screen to indicate it's done, and the line gets drawn, but then it stays there. I like things to disappear from the Today tab. So I only used the star for writing. Weekdays are for the novels (I'm writing two at the moment--it was five, but I've narrowed it down to two--one on the iPad, and one on my office computer in the afternoons.) And as of yesterday, the weekends are for blogging. As soon as I push "Publish Post," I get to check it off my 2Do list.
And even though this one has been mostly about nothing, I do have a lot on my mind. It has been quite a year for me, and I have a bunch of topics coming soon, like "Being Catty" and "Stop Telling Me to Build My Barn" and "Oops! I Inhaled. A Lot." And of course, there are Penny stories and Booman tales, along with the escapades of my border collie, Moon, and my lamb, Baba Wawa.
I had some folks tell me recently that they missed my stories on the Bengals-L Yahoo list. I'm still kind of there, but mostly you'll find me on FaceBook or right here. Uncensored.
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