3.31.2012

Grace and Grieving

This comment, written in response to an editorial written by Charles Blow in The New York Times, sums up completely how I feel about the Trayvon Martin case:

"The thing that's different about Trayvon's murder--that shows me a different America than the one I grew up in--is that EVERY parent sees in Trayvon their own child. That Zimmerman saw a black face as a weapon turns the stomachs of millions as a hallmark of a more repugnant time in our history--yet one that lingers in the shadows with nauseating effect when it now surfaces."

No matter what the outcome...

If Trayvon is proven to have "started" the fight that left him dead because George Zimmerman followed him, thinking he didn't belong.

If Trayvon had a record as a "troubled" teen, one who had been suspended several times for wrong-doing.

If he was wearing a hoodie, which made him a criminal in some people's minds.

He was a child, a human being. He didn't desrve to be killed, no matter the circumstances.

In high school, I stole a stop sign, smoked pot every once in awhile, sneaked off campus for lunch, and skipped class ocasionally. I'm also pretty sure I owned a hooded sweatshirt. Did I have it coming? Would it make a difference if I said I'm white?

This is my issue with the Trayvon Martin case. He didn't deserve to be shot--from everything I've heard, he was hunted down and killed by someone who thought he was "other" because of the color of his skin. Prove me wrong. And God help us all if we truly haven't evolved past that.

3.30.2012

More Money than God

Just as I'm sure around 200 million other people have done tonight, my husband and I have figured out how to spend the $640 Mega Millions jackpot.* The problem is, even after paying $300 million in taxes, using $200 million to start a foundation that pays for scholarships, healthcare costs, and finding homes for stray animals, giving $75 million to friends and family, buying a couple of houses, several cars, and a boat, and Saints season tickets for life, AND renting out the Cedar Point amusement park once a month for the foreseeable future so I that can ride some really cool roller coasters, we still have about $70 million left over, give or take a few mil. Problems, problems.

*We will not be checking to confirm that we didn't win until tomorrow, in order to prolong the fantasy a little bit longer.

3.24.2012

Ways in Which I Rebel

Ever since we bought our dishwasher back in 2007, the drying function hasn't worked. Clean dishes have to sit in there for about three solid days before all of the water evaporates off of them. It's a real pain, as far as household pains go, especially since there are always at least about 30 plastic cups from Mardi Gras in there, which, for some reason, seem to take three times as long as the average dish to dry.

My husband (you know, the one who never notices that green light on the dishwasher that means the dishes are clean and can be unloaded) constantly gets on my case about the fact that I don't hand dry every Mardi Gras cup as I take it out of the dishwasher.  To me, this is unnecessary labor--they'll dry eventually, right? Even if they are stacked up in the cupboard and therefore it takes some of them at least a week to dry.

Kenny seems to think this will cause a mildew problem. And perhaps it will, but we have about 876 Mardi Gras cups, so if we lose a few to mildew, no big deal, right? Wrong. That man loves his Mardi Gras cups like they're gold-plated or something. Also, I have way more pressing things to do than lovingly hand dry each Mardi Gras cup--like vacuum up the approximately five pounds of dog hair that accumulate in our house on a daily basis. 

So, after several years of getting scolded for not putting the cups away properly, I've finally figured out a fool-proof method.  I stack the cups without drying them, then shove them way in the back of the kitchen cabinet and move a couple of stacks that have dried to the front.  Problem solved. And most importantly, I haven't been discovered yet.

I also like to furtively throw away Mardi Gras cups every chance I get. Sometimes, Kenny finds them buried way down in the trash and brings them back into the house again. But it's always fun when I'm able to successfully throw away a cup. It's the little things that keep a 17-year relationship fun, you know?

Yes, I know, I need to get out more. Welcome to an exciting Saturday night at my house.

3.22.2012

F*ck Roger Goodell



Did the Saints have a bounty program when they shouldn’t have? Yes. Were there lots of other teams with similar systems in place? Yes. Does that excuse the Saints’ behavior? No. Are the penalties being handed down by Roger Goodell outrageously excessive? Absolutely.

It feels as if Goodell has just told the entire city of New Orleans to go fuck itself.  An entire year of suspension for Payton? Give me a break. I know that “everybody else does it, too” is not a defense. But I honestly don’t feel that the Saints were intentionally trying to seriously injure other players, regardless of what’s being said in the media.

3.04.2012