What I did this weekend

I got a new tattoo, my second. It is a phoenix, and how geeky am I? So geeky that it is from the cover of a book of literary criticism by D. H. Lawrence. Oh yeah, I am an English Major all the way to the core.  It is on my right ankle, and it hurt more than my first tattoo, which is on my left arm, because it was over more bone (and there really isn't any padding on your ankle). But I like it.

I also went to a union and Wisconsin support rally at the Capitol Building. It wasn't anywhere near as large as some of the rallies in other states, but for conservative, right-to-work Arkansas, it was pretty good.

I have never been to any political rally before, apart from a party in someone's driveway to watch the presidential debates in 2008, but I have been getting more and more angry at the way politicians continue to ignore the people, and at the conservatives who want to balance the budget on the backs of the middle-class and poor, especially women.

I wrote an email to Tim Griffin, my congress-critter, asking him to reconsider his support for the bill that denies funding to Planned Parenthood, and I got a tone-deaf form letter back: "That is why I signed up to co-sponsor H.R. 217, the Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act, which was introduced by Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, and which prevents funds from going to Planned Parenthood" and "As your Congressman, rest assured that I will always fight to protect the lives of the unborn."  But he doesn't seem to support the children who are actually born. Nor do most Republicans - check out this wonderful editorial column from Charles M. Blow in the NY Times last week. 

So it was rather heartening to see so many people who support the working class, who know that the problem isn't the high pay given to teachers and the regular state employees like me - 'cause none of us go into this to be rich - but the lack of corporate taxes, and too many subsidies given to those same companies.

In some cities, there were also rallies for reproductive rights, and if there had been one in Little Rock, I would have gone to that too. 

We liberal progressives need to stand up, make our voices heard, take ownership of the struggle, move beyoned Twitter and Facebook and get outside.

Small moments of grace

Yesterday was a blustery day, capped off by severe thunderstorms and a tornado warning that set off all the sirens in town. And yet, by 8 PM when I took the garbage out and wheeled the bin to the curb, the sky was clear, and I could see Orion.

After a gray winter, the daffodils are starting to bloom around town, and the trees are starting to put on new leaves and flowers.

I slept in, which made my trip to the gym shorter, and made me run a little late leaving the house for work, but traffic was light the entire way, and instead of being late, I was 5 minutes early.

As I drove in, the clouds had returned, but the sun occasionally broke through with shafts of light, the kind I always imagined shining on Jesus at his baptism when I was a child, and that always reminds me of beauty and grace.

Appearance vs. Substance

Why do we so often settle for a proper appearance while allowing the substance of an issue to go undiscussed? This happens all the time in politics - a politician shouts about death panels and that is all anyone can hear, or tries to hear, instead of learning how the changes would benefit society. The TSA says it is making us safer by making 4-year-old children and elderly grandparents go through a full-body pat down.* And the media tends to go along. It uses scary voice-overs and shouting anchors to freak everyone out and get worried about situations that aren't much of a problem, instead of focusing on the actual problems.

Which one serves me better? A doctor's office with a lovely waiting room, but an hour long wait for a scheduled appointment, or one with obviously used furniture and a 15 minute wait? How about a website that doesn't have all the latest features, but does have great customer support and an easily found set of contact information, versus a shiny website with a great flash presentation of the goods you are shopping for, but that is terrible to actually use and has no alternate means of contacting the company?  I would rather have the dumpy waiting room with a prompt doctor, and the usable website. How about you?

I am not saying that appearance isn't important at times, because it certainly can be - who wants to use a nasty gas station bathroom if it isn't absolutely necessary? - but why is it so often accepted as more important? Who does it benefit? Certainly not the customer or citizen, certainly not the employees.

How incredibly frustrating this is! There is so little anyone can do about it. Quite often, there is no-one to whom you can complain or offer suggestions in such situations, because if the deciders actually cared, they would have already worked more on the substance. I am not good at letting such things go, which will probably help me worry myself into an early grave; I have to try to fight back, to point out the absurdity of the situation, to yell that the Emperor has no clothes on.  I may get myself in all kinds of hot water because of this (including with my mother - Hi Mom!), but at least I still have that right in this country (for now, anyway.)

*Check out this rather horrifying photo album of just this.