Might As Well Dance

You can find me at facebook

Sorry I haven't updated here in months, but I am at facebook.  

Remember

I've thought all day about how to accurately convey what I'm thinking and feeling.

I grew up in an area on the east coast that was very subtly segregated.  It was never an overt thing, just something everyone - regardless of age - internalized.  I cried happy tears last night for all of my friends and neighbors of various races & ethnicities who will be able to honestly look at their own children and say, "see, in America anything is possible."

What I will remember about last night is looking at my children and saying "Remember this day. Remember what you were doing and where you were."  

Now, my particular children will remember watching the election returns on the computer, seeing me celebrating when Barack Obama won Pennsylvania, doing happy dances with their mom, and Spencer jumping on the bed.  Thomas probably won't remember much at all, but the others will.

I feel like now there is a chance that I will be able to look into their eyes one day and know that we are leaving the world a little better than we found it.  There is a chance I will be able to do that.

I've been a little giddy all day.  Not because I think things will be perfect - I know that's not possible. But at least a lot of Americans have a reason to be hopeful now.  Hopeful because we will have a president who is my president regardless of my race, gender, religion or sexual orientation. 

And isn't that an amazing thing?

Thank you, President-Elect Obama.

The Burns Family

If you are the praying type (or the dancing type, the chanting type, etc.) please start doing whatever it is you do for the Burns Family.

This is Serenity's family (my little friend with Leukemia.  The one w/ the ChipIn thing here on my blog).  They have an older child, Taran, who is having some very serious medical problems at the moment.

He had surgery on Monday for an appendectomy and intussusception.  Both are fairly routine things. Unfortunately he has developed some frightening complications & has been transferred from UVRMC to Primary Children's.  He is in emergent surgery.  This is never something you want to have happen to your child.  If, god forbid, your child needs surgery, you want it to be planned & not emergent.  You don't want your child to be hurried into surgery because (from a medical perspective) they look like crap.

So, pray, dance, chant, etc.  Do whatever & hopefully something will work.  This family really needs to catch a break.

Thanks.

My List

I know that I hardly update here anymore, but this I wanted to write this down. And, yes, Nate is aware :)

After reading Dooce today, I thought it would be fun to put it in writing. And, yes, my sexuality is a bit more flexible than some...

My FFFL

1. Bradley Whitford (and if you need an explanation here, then I really can't help you.) If, however, you are unfamiliar, here are some links to get you started:
Bradley Video #1 (you first see him at about 1:20)
Bradley Video #2
Bradley Video #3

2. Matthew Perry The dorkiness gets me. I mean, it really, really works.

3. Mary-Louise Parker
The phrase "a picture is worth a thousand words" comes to mind.

4. Angelina Jolie
This is a chemical thing that I can't really explain.

5. Aaron Sorkin (it's his mind & his writing that gets me - works every time.) I mean he's a dork of the first degree, but I do not mind; no, he & I belong to the same club - yes we do.

tailspin

I've been in a bit of a tailspin recently. Lots of things are getting shifted aside. I feel like I'm letting the urgent crowd out the important - and that's not a good feeling.

Work has been nutty. We switched to a new electronic medical system last Monday & all the docs were in training the week before. One of the docs went on vacation & then got STUCK IN AFRICA. Can you imagine? That meant that we had zero docs and two nurse practitioners one day last week. We can't open the clinic without a pediatrician. So, I had to convince a pediatrician to come in on her day off. Trust me, you might need body armor if you are going to attempt that one. One of the other docs was up a mountain & unreachable unless I wanted to get the park service involved. And my fourth pediatrician was in meetings all day & hadn't had a day off in nearly 10 days. It was a mess, but we somehow made it work.

Then, I had one receptionist quit because she couldn't afford to keep driving 45 minutes each way (cost of gas) and I had to fire another. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. That leaves me with two experienced receptionists when we really need at least 4. Especially on a Monday morning.

I have friends that really need me right now & I feel like I'm letting them down. Sheesh. I have KIDS that really need me right now & I feel like I'm letting them down. You know that movie where the guy clones himself? That's starting to sound very attractive.

I'm leaving for Boston on Friday. My cousin is getting married next Sunday. I can't wait to go, but I am, of course stressing about what to wear & if my kids will be okay while I'm gone.

Honestly, I wish I was a kid in daycare again. Naps, and toys, and snacks, and freetime. Sounds blissful.

Look!

Look at how much money has been raised for Serenity. This is just since May 23rd. Way to go internets!

definition of a family

I was directed to a very special blog a few weeks ago by my friend, Steph. I think her blog is temporarily password protected - but she's a pretty funny read.

Anyway, the blog she sent me to is written by Matt Logelin

This man welcomed his beautiful baby girl into the world a couple of months ago, and then had to say goodbye to his wife the very next day.

I am not often moved by these sorts of things, but the raw emotion - love - he has for his daughter and his late wife has made an impact on me. I enjoy his writing style, his story telling and his photographs. The baby's pretty cute too.

I would pretend to be shocked - but I'm not, not at all

Beware. There is an abstinence magazine being marketed to teenagers and students. It is a crock of shit. If my language offends you, well, tough. There really isn't any other word to describe it. If you want to teach your kid abstinence then knock yourselves out. Would you please also teach them how to use a condom? For the love of...

Read about it here:
idiocy

Of special note: Every "article" or "personal story" is labeled somewhere on the page as an "Advertising Supplement." I had no idea why they would do that until the blogger I have directed you to above pointed out that this way the magazine isn't held responsible in anyway. None of those "articles" or "stories" can be or are required to be verified if they are labeled as an "Advertising Supplement." They also have some quack doctor claiming that abortions cause all manner of nonsense.

I know that some of you are passionately religious. And those of you that I know personally, you know that I love you. I consider myself a spiritual person, perhaps not a religious person. What these people are trying to do is just wrong, wrong, wrong.

The Power of the Internet

Yes, the fact that Phil & Adria's daughter, Serenity, is very sick and still very much uninsured is pissing me off. This family has enough on their plate already!

Yes, their medical bills will be staggeringly high. And they have never seen medical bills like this - they've never seen one of their own children as sick as this either.

Yes, they will be - at times - completely overwhelmed with both medical & financial issues. Not to mention the logistics of managing an entire family from a small hospital room on the Immuno-Compromised Unit of one of the top 10 children's hospitals in the country.

But, wow, guys. I have been so impressed with the internets and their fundraising efforts. Most of these donations are in small dollar amounts, but SO MANY PEOPLE are donating that it is adding up very quickly.

On the days that I'm feeling cynical and jaded, I will just remind myself that in the middle of a national recession, during one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year, the internet came together to help a baby.

Thanks guys.

You just made my year.

Bradley Whitford

Just because I think he's hot & I like his politics. Stop laughing! He is hot! He is! No one can convince me otherwise :)

I Am Voting For

and I needed to think some happy liberal-ish thoughts today to distract me from my very intense anger that Serenity doesn't have heath insurance. We can fix that - we just have to elect the right people.