Not the Usual Trip to the Video Store

Chelsea completed her driver's training last Thursday, so I figure that it's a good idea to give her as much opportunity to drive as possible. I hadn't shared this strategy with her when she asked yesterday if I would take her to Hollywood Video. I promptly said I would, quietly grabbed her driver's permit and car keys and headed for the garage with Chelsea right behind me. I immediately headed for the passenger side of the car and the look on Chelsea's face was priceless. "You want me to drive!!!???" I could see the mix of excitement, shock, and nervousness in her eyes. I confidently said, "get in, you're driving." Now my outer confidence was masking sheer terror. I was turning my car, which means so much to me, over to my daughter who means even more. She got in and started adjusting the seat to fit her shorter legs. I thought it would be a good idea to do a test run up the lane next to our house before taking her out into real traffic.

It became immediately apparent that Chels needs some practice with backing up. She hasn't quite grasped which way to turn the wheel. However, the rest of her driving skills are pretty good. She completed the "test run" down our lane and was ready to head off to the video store. She bravely inched her way up to the intersection waiting for the light to turn green. Once the light turned green she gingerly hit the accelerator and was immediately thrilled to see that my car excelerated much faster than the Ford Explorer that she did her training in. I, of course, dutifully told her that just because the car can excelerate fast doesn't mean that she should. She took all of my non-stop instructions very well, much better than I expected. Usually when I try to tell her what to do I get the typical teenager defensiveness, but there was none of that during our short trip to the video store. As we were nearing the video store I commented to her about how special it was to share this rite of passage with her. I think I was more touched than she was. Her focus was on getting us to the store in one piece. I'd like to report that she was successful in doing so.

I Never Thought The Day Would Come

I never thought I'd be saying the words that I'm about to say. I joined the teacher's union today. It was not an easy decision to make because I believe that the unions are primarily a political body rather than a negotiating body. This is particularly true of California Faculty Association, the union I just joined.

What brought me to such a decision? Well, every month there is a deduction that is taken for CFA non-member fees, which is approximately $50. This deduction bothers me to no end. I have no choice in the matter, they just take my money. This deduction is not what made me decide to join the union, but it got me thinking. If you haven't heard, California is in a terrible situation financially. We've gone to Washington hat in hand asking for the rest of the country to bail us out. We also have a state legislature that is unable to pass a budget that adequately curbs spending. More job cuts are going to be coming to employees of the state. I'm a state employee. I also see which direction the prevailing wind is blowing when it comes to unions. We have ushered in a pro-union climate with our last election. When you take all these factors into consideration I began to feel vulnerable. It is likely that those who are not union members will be the most attractive to cut loose. We depend on my job to provide the family with medical and dental insurance, which I use on a regular basis.

So, last night Dan and I talked about it and decided that I would contact the union rep and ask a few questions. Such as, if I were to join the union, would I have to pay more in union fees each month? If I join the union, how much of my fees go toward PAC's? Interestingly today, before I had a chance to send an email to the union rep, I had a knock on my door. Guess who was on the other side of the door? Two union reps asking for me by name. I invited them in to my office and started asking them questions. But before I asked them questions I very frankly shared with them, in a respectful way, my contempt for unions and lack of desire to join their ranks. They were also quite respectful, which was a relief because I really didn't feel like debating the issue with them.

They told me that my fees would remain the same, but now I would be able to vote on contracts, where as a non-union member I could not vote. They also told me that when I fill out the application I can request that none of my money is given to PAC's. Both of my concerns were addressed and allayed, so I filled out the application card and became a member of the union.

I have to admit I still feel a little dirty, but I figure I'm taking one for the family.

Would You Get Naked?

It has been raining almost non-stop for 24 hours. The rain has finally stopped and we're starting to get glimpses of sunlight. It's my favorite time right after a good rain. Everything starts turning green and looks oh so clean. I just wish the rain had stopped a few hours earlier. It's not my favorite thing to have to walk in a heavy rain from my car to class. My feet and lower legs are usually soaked by the time I make it to cover. If this is the worst thing that happens to me in a day, I guess I'm having a pretty good day.

Today was the first day that we did group work in my Abnormal Psychology class. I love to see the panic/nervousness in my student's eyes. It's such a waste of emotions. They quickly find out that their anticipation was far worse than the reality of the situation. Initially the room is very chaotic, but as they slowly realize that this "group stuff" isn't so bad, in fact, it's kind of fun, you can feel the tension in the room transform into a healthy energetic buzz. I love the first day of group work!

When I arrived at work today the "messy one" was not there. I had the office to myself. I was so happy that I felt the urge to strip naked and dance a happy dance. I resisted the urge. Which is a nice set-up for a story that a student shared today in my Introductory class. A female friend had just moved into a new house. The phone hadn't been hooked up yet. Someone broke into her house. She had no access to a phone to call for help so she did the next best thing. She stripped down to her birthday suit and grabbed a knife. The intruder was so shocked by her state of undress that he turned and ran away. I don't know if this story is true or not, but I certainly enjoyed the thought of it being true. I know that if I did this, the very sight of me naked would surely cause anyone, intruder or not, to turn tail and get the heck outta there!

The Good and the Bad

Several things that I'm happy about:

• That my kids have the next week, yes week, off for President's Day. I'm not quite sure about the logic that brought us a week's worth of vacation for a holiday that lasts 24 hours, but who am I to question? I'm just enjoying not having to get the kids to school every morning by 7:45 am.
• Being able to sleep in until 7:15 am this morning. An extra hour in the morning does wonders for my spirits.
• My daughter, on her own, came to me and announced that she was going to do a "spring cleaning" in her room yesterday. Finally she rid herself of the final vestiges of being a child. Bye, bye beanie babies! Her room looked terrific by the end of the day. I'm still in shock to be honest, but a happy shock.
• That I have a husband who is willing to crawl underneath the house to fix a problem with the venting system to our dryer (we almost burned our house down on Sunday).
• That we discovered the burning lint caught in the venting system before it caught the house on fire.

Several things that I'm very unhappy about:

• Arlen Spector, Olympia Snowe, and Susan Collins - these bozos are making the passing of the stimulus legislation possible. I emailed each of them this morning to share with them the extent of my unhappiness.
• "The messy one" who I share an office with is letting his true colors shine through by starting more and more piles of his junk.
• "The messy one" is always in the office now. When I arrive he is there, while I'm working he is there, and when I leave he is there. He only teaches two classes. What is so important that makes all this office time necessary? I fantasize about telling him to "get the heck out." But I would never allow myself such a nasty outburst, so I'll just fume and smile.
• I'm tired of eating protein. I've lost 10 1/2 pounds (which I'm happy about), but I'm sick to death of what's on the menu. I'm close to making a change. Hopefully that change won't undo my progress.

That's about all I can muster today.

Don't Mock Me Mr. President

Someone needs to tell Obama that he is no longer a candidate for president. I just watched him give a speech regarding the "stimulus" package. He sounded more like he was running for president instead of actually being president. His revival meeting style of speech included a systematic mocking of those who challenge his package. I happen to be one of those who has valid concerns regarding the wisdom of spending our way out of this financial crisis. I never thought I'd see the day that the President of the United States would sit before television cameras and mock anyone who holds a different view from his own. I think the president needs to remember that he is president of us all; even those who might disagree with him. We have just as much right to voice our opinion and to have our valid concerns considered rather than mocked. His performance tonight disgusted me and I let him know of my disgust in an email. What happened to his unite rather than divide stance that he so often talked about during his campaign? Oh I know, it went the way of the "sunlight before signing" and "new era of transparency and ethics" stances...right out the window.

Waking Up

I believe that our country is fundamentally changing and not for the good. As I watch the behavior of our elected officials, I become very disheartened. It would be easy to throw up my hands and say there's nothing that I can do; I might as well just disconnect and let those in power do what they will. But giving up is not in my nature and I have to believe that I'm not alone. So, I've begun to make a pest of myself to my elected officials. Instead of depending on voting in every election as the sole way in which my voice is heard, I now am, almost on a daily basis, contacting my representative and senators and letting them know how I want them to vote on whatever the issue of the day is. I realize that most of the time they aren't going to listen, but at least I can look myself in the mirror and know that I did something. I'm probably not going to stop there. I'm just not sure at this time what I will do next, but I'm keeping my eyes and ears open and will do whatever is necessary to be an active citizen.

I pray that others are experiencing the same kind of awakening that I am. I am sick and tired of elected officials thinking that they know better than me; that they are above the law; that they have the right to dictate to me. These politicians have become so disconnected from the people that it is frightening. They have no clue how to solve the problems before us. All they seem to think of is moving their party's agenda forward instead of asking what is the right thing for this country. I plan on reminding them who they work for every single day.