Instead of bitching, give us your solution!

I keep hearing from my conservative friends, whom I respect very much, about how government-run health care is not an option. They keep making ridiculous claims of "socialism," or they shout, "Give us our country back!" Yet, none of them seems to have an answer about how to address this very real problem. They don't seem to want to give President Obama a chance, and would rather moan and groan about his "socialist policies" than actually provide a legitimate solution to the problem.

I am not suggesting I have a solution, because I do not. Nor am I suggesting we hard-working Americans pay to insure every low-life, lazy ass person who expects the government to take care of them. They are the exception to the rule. There are far more hard working Americans with good paying jobs who simply cannot afford to pay for private or employer-sponsored health care than there are leeches who suck the system dry.

Premiums and co-pays continue to rise, yet we see our doctors for shorter and shorter periods of time. I literally wait in the waiting room for an hour and actually see my doctor for less than five minutes. Is that supposed to be quality health care? I think not.

Additionally, we currently do not have a choice in the insurance my husband's employer provides for our health care benefits. We either go with the program the employer chooses, or we're on our own. That is not a good option.

So why is everyone so up in arms about a public option? It would give all Americans an equal opportunity to get insurance to cover medical expenses. Why should a middle or upper class citizen have more access than one living below the poverty line? Is there no compassion left in this country? I just don't get it. If you have a better idea, either put up or shut up.

Rush wants to save penises from Obama

Wow, just when I thought I heard Rush Limbaugh say every crazy thing imaginable, he goes and says this to rapper Jay-Z, who mentions the conservative radio talk show host in a new song:

If we need to save our penises from anybody, it's Obama.

Limbaugh is referring to his assertion that President Obama wants to mandate circumcision. Listen here.

Gimme a break--I sure deserve it!

Good grief, I need a break. My husband is on another continent right now and won't return for another three days. Keeping the kids entertained, fed, clothed, and happy has been a challenge for the last week since he left. It came to a head earlier tonight:

"Mom, can I have some candy?"
"No, not right now."
"You said I could have some candy! Don't you want me to be happy? Do you want me to cry?!"

Then I got smacked on the ass by the child in question. WTF?! Have they forgotten who's in charge here? You'd think they were deprived. All I know is, as soon as Daddy is back in town, Mommy is going out with her girlfriends for a mani/pedi and some drinks!

Surviving another semester

I can hardly believe it myself. I made it through an 18-credit-hour semester and did not lose my sanity in the process! I cannot begin to express how happy I am that the semester has ended and I have over three months off. Well...off school, anyway. I still have the kids to entertain all summer, but we'll all have fun together. All they want me to do is play "Wario Land Shake It" on the Wii...the gaming console I have neglected over the past nine months. Instead of that, I think I will fire up "Wii Fit."

I hope to post more here this summer. In the fall, I will be taking some tough classes--but only 13 credit hours this time. That will make things better for me, at least I hope so anyway. I added an elective course this time--yoga! I hope to get back into a regular practice long before then, but either way I will have no excuse not to practice yoga at least twice a week for an hour and a half.

Mom needs to take better care of herself!

I am referring to myself here, because I have been neglecting myself in pursuit of other things (kids' stuff, my studies, husband's business traveling, my mom, the dogs, the house...the list goes on and on). It seems I am busy all the time!

I have been on spring break this past week, so I made my routine appointments. Dentist, doctor, eye exam, and so forth. I weigh in at the doctor and BLAM! Hit me like a ton of bricks. Since I started back to school about three years ago, I have put on 25 pounds! What did I give up when I went back to school, you may ask? Yoga.

Yoga kept me in better shape and kept my weight down. After I had my son six years ago, I not only lost the baby weight but I lost more. I was thinner then than I was when I got married! And it was thanks to two things: chasing after a little boy (once he started crawling) and YOGA!

For those who have never tried yoga and think it's not worth anything, you have no idea what you're talking about. Yoga is an amazing physical and mental exercise...honestly the only exercise I ever looked forward to doing. I used to go to yoga class regularly and also practiced at home (I have several DVDs, mostly Gaiam-produced). The DVDs are currently collecting dust in the media cabinet where I keep them.

I know the solution to my problem. I need to get away from this computer and start moving! My eating habits are basically the same (no fast food [too gross to even think about]; home-cooked, low fat meals; fruits and vegetables [I love veggies]; no red meat--just chicken breast or fish; no fried foods). However, I tend to snack late at night when I am up doing homework. I wait till the kids are off to bed to study, and then I snack on crackers or pretzels while I work. Not a good idea. I have to keep grapes or bananas in the house at all times if I am going to lose this weight! Carbs are my weakness...oh, and chocolate.

So...wish me luck. I have to figure out a way to treat myself to 30 minutes of yoga every day without taking away what little sleep I get or slacking on my studies. Let's see, now...where did I put that Rodney Yee DVD?

I have sinned: it's been six weeks since my last blog post

Boy, have I ever been busy! I wrapped up my semester this week, turning in a paper on Tuesday. After that, I grocery shopped (bare cupboards) and today I wrapped presents for my kids. Santa is being pretty generous again this year.

So what about W dodging the shoe? How funny was that??? I mean, yes, it was an assault on the President of the United States. I get it. Yet, I can't stop laughing about it. It reminds me of playing Wii Fit, trying to dodge the soccer cleats and panda heads. I get whacked by those freakin' cleats every time I play.

So, what else will I do with my time? I finally started the David Sedaris book I borrowed from my best friend, Christine...oh, let's see...about a year ago. Me Talk Pretty One Day...you should check it out. Very funny stuff. I also plan to get rid of a lot of shit I have accumulated over the past few months (years) and move my desk downstairs. Right now, it's in the bedroom and it's a catch-all for all my crap. I am unorganized enough as it is, so getting rid of the clutter will help to calm things down around here. Maybe...

The kids have two more days of school until they are off for TWO WEEKS. Holy moly, I have to keep them entertained for two weeks. Wish me luck. I have a full month off (woo hoo!) so I really hope I can do a little sewing, a lot of reading, and a whole lot of house cleaning. This place needs a good scrub.

Thank you, America, for an Obama victory

WHEW!!! I am so glad this is over. Now we have some time to breathe, at least for two years until it starts all over again.

I am so grateful that we have elected Barack Obama as our 44th president. I cannot wait until January 20, 2009, when he takes over in the driver's seat. Too bad he is inheriting a clunker, with bald tires, a hole in the muffler, and a busted transmission. President-Elect Obama has a lot of work to do to fix up this vehicle we call democracy so we can get ourselves back on the right track.

I can once again believe the United States is admired abroad. I truly believe the results of this year's election made the rest of the world look at us in a whole new light. Believe what you want, but it matters what other nations think of us. What we do in the U.S. has a profound effect on nations worldwide. If we do not have the respect of our own allies, imagine what our "enemies" think? Now that we are getting some of that credibility back, things will look better everywhere.

Sure, maybe I am looking at this with rose-colored glasses. But I have to! Otherwise, I will drive myself mad and turn into a bitter, cynical, crabass. I'm already crabby enough when I haven't had my coffee, so nobody wants that. I have to look at this in a positive light because, based on this country's violent history of slavery and oppression, I am finally seeing the old die-hard racism fading as citizens age. They are starting to die off, and that has been shown in the statistics of who voted for Obama and who did not. The demographic breakdown speaks for itself.

We are not there yet, and maybe we never will be in my lifetime, but every little step we take to end racism and prejudice in this country will make us all better off.