Category: Life in general

Categories
Life in general

Excuse Me While I Rant

Disclaimer: As I write this I am angry, disappointed and confused.  I am struggling to make sense of my emotions.  Nothing I say is meant to offend or condemn anyone else.

In the wake of the great change that awaits this nation upon the election of Barack Obama, I am left feeling happy for the nation, and sad for my great state of California.

As I type this, Proposition 8 has a 52% affirmative vote.  We wait for the final 4.6% of our votes to be counted, but the chances of it failing are slim at this point.  In light of the 20% gap between the yes and no votes on Proposition 22 back in March of 2000, I am happy to see that we have covered so much ground in the last 8 1/2 years.

But, as a Christian, I am left with doubts about my religion.  About the bible I have read and loved.  For the first time in my life, I am ashamed to say I am a Christian. 

We are taught to use our bible and our faith as a moral compass through the forest of life.  But as I walk, how can I ignore the signs around me, telling me that I am no longer heading North?  The compass tells me I am walking the path of righteousness, and yet.  The sun and the stars, the moss on the trees, my very own heart, mind and gut tell me the compass is wrong.

How can I continue to support a religion that preaches to love thy neighbor, judge not, and accept free will, and in the very same breath works hard to oppress people they don’t even know, in the name of God?  Regardless of what the bible says about homosexuality, this is NOT the Christian United States of America, and people have FREE WILL for a reason.  Just as I am FREE to be a Christian, so should other people be FREE of the shackles of my beliefs.  How does one person’s choice to love and marry another effect my life, my marriage, my religious beliefs?

I was one of those kids in history class who just knew she would have been one of the brave people to stand up for civil rights in the 1950’s, regardless of how her family, neighbors or church felt.  Heather’s brother Kyle pointed out that most of us probably felt that way. 

There are places in this country where they still believe people of color are less than.  They quote bible scriptures that affirm their beliefs in their minds.  I have heard it with my own ears, seen it with my own eyes.  These past few weeks I have heard and seen bible verses thrown at other people as a weapon – people who are just trying to live their lives in the best way that they can, just like everyone else – and tell them that they will take away their rights based on those scriptures.

I am appalled.  I am sad.  I am terribly, terribly confused.  I stand at a great precipice in the course of my life, and I must choose my compass wisely.

Categories
Life in general

I Voted, Have You?

Well, it’s official!  I placed my bet cast my ballot.  Or touched the computer screen, anyway.  What’s the term for that newfangled technology?

I am now the proud wearer of an “I VOTED!” sticker.  Which my children will promptly steal, I’m sure. 

Being the official reminder-er of our family, I have decided to NOT remind my husband to go vote today.  He is still undecided, and I’m not the type to push a grown man.

The problem is this: he has a rule that he won’t vote for a president who hasn’t served in the military.  I say, rules are made to be broken.  But don’t tell the kids I said that.

This morning I had a talk with Alison before school, and she asked why I wanted her to remember that today was election day.  It’s important to me that she remember today, and be able to look back as an adult and recall with clarity what happened on Tuesday, November 4th, 2008.

And so I ask her, “What is today?” and she says, “Tuesday?”.

And I say, “What important thing is Mommy doing today?” and she says, “Picking me up from school on time?”

And I say, “Of course, yes.  But also, who is Mommy voting for today?” and she says, “That nice man from the computer.  The man you said is going to be president.”

And I say, “Yes, baby, but what is his name?” and she says, “Barack Mabama!”

And I say, “Close enough”.

Categories
Blogging Business Life in general

Seven

My bloggy friend Christina over at MamaNeena tagged me to name my top 7 secrets or oddities, that no one really knows.  It took me awhile to narrow the list, but here are the ones I settled on:

1.  If I eat fast food, I have to fold my food wrappers into a small square before throwing them away.  I don’t care if other people crumple their own, but leave me to my damn folding, OK?

2.  I love beans.  All kinds of beans.  If I could get away with eating rice and beans every day, I probably would.  My pantry is a testament to my devotion:



3.  For the first 20 years of my life, I was an extremely picky eater.  No kidding, even as an infant I refused breast milk, formula, and regular milk.  I had never even eat a bean (ever) until just a few years ago, because they looked like they’d have a funny texture.  See what I was missing out on?

4.  Now that we’ve covered some of my food oddities, I’ll confess that I foolishly got married two weeks after my 18th birthday, to a guy I had only known for a year and who I felt was “safe”.  Let’s just say, not all marriages are meant to last.

5.  I am a firm believer in hypnotherapy.  It’s gotten me through migraines, insomnia, restless leg syndrome, memory loss and two natural childbirths without even a whimper (and I have the video to prove it).  It’s the freaking bomb.

6.  My parents named me Andrea, pronounced On-dree-uh, but I go by On-dray-uh.  I changed it in junior high to stop people from calling me AAAND-ree-uh.  If your name IS  AAAND-ree-uh, no offense, but it’s like nails on the chalkboard to me.  Because of my name change, 90% of the people in my life call me “Dre”.  Some of them think it’s actually my whole name.

7.  I should make #7 a doozy, a big finale, right?  OK.  I actually thought about committing suicide once.  It was during my short-lived marriage, and I was in a bad place, literally and figuratively.  At that very moment in time (oh  my goodness, I just realized it was Halloween night, 11 years ago), I decided I couldn’t do it because I couldn’t leave my cats.  I know, pathetic – but I got through it, alright?  And my cats are still here with me, drooling on me and holding me up.


Now that I’ve confessed 7 things, I have to tag someone else.  I can’t tag Kia, because she just answered something like 150 questions about herself, and she’s bound to be tapped out. 

Oh!  I know!  I’ll tag Sophie, at Inzaburbs.  Come on, Sophie!  Blow off home schooling for a few minutes and tell us a few of your deepest, darkest secrets!

Categories
Life in general Ranch Life Travel

1300 Miles

When you were a kid, did your parents ever tell you that your favorite dog went to live on a farm, where he/she was now happily running free like the wind?  Well, let me tell you a little something – first of all, that dog was probably dead as a door nail.  Second of all, not all dogs are cut out for farm life.

Take our little Lucy dog, who pushed her way into our hearts and lives to the point that we adopted her, instead of finding her a home like we had planned.  She’s a great dog – smart and affectionate, loyal and sweet.  But girlfriend freaks out around large animals.  I thought she’d get better about it as she grew, but instead, her reactions got worse. 

So, with a heavy heart I made the best decision for her, and found her a loving home with my cousin in Arizona.  Who, I might add, had wanted to adopt Lucy for months but I had selfishly declined, planning to keep every ounce of her puppy love for myself.

On Monday I gave her a little spa treatment.




She said good-bye to her big brother, and cuddled up next to him for the last time.

Tuesday morning we got up before dawn and began our journey South.  We did things two girls on a road trip usually do.

We saw the sunrise.


We experienced the frustration of being forced to pee in undesirable places.




When we finally found a patch of grass, we took a little break for lunch and a belly rub.



Lucy convinced me to let her out of her crate to roam around the car, and rewarded my confidence by promptly taking a nap.  While pretending to be on guard, of course.



After nearly 10 hours on the road, we arrived at our destination: a park in the little town of Blythe, California.  When I saw Blythe on the map, I couldn’t resist making it our meeting spot.  Now I can tell Blythe I’ve been to “her” town. 

We played and had a snack while Lucy bonded with her new family.




Eventually, it was time to say good-bye.  I stopped being the mommy and became the auntie.



Lucy loaded up in my cousin’s car and we waved as we drove in opposite directions.  She’s off to start her new life, where she’s being spoiled with a big yard, a pool, constant affection and indoor privileges, nary a pig or cow to be seen.

I drove off into the sunset, alone in a quiet car, no wet nose rubbing against my elbow.



A few hours later I arrived at the home of Heather and Mike Spohr in Los Angeles, where I got to meet the world famous Maddie Moo.




Maddie is even cuter and smilier in person than she is in pictures – something I didn’t think was possible.  Their little dog, Rigby, brought her boyfriend Mordecai out for a little XXX show, but she must have gotten stage fright and abandoned him on the living room floor.  I admit, I was a little disappointed.

Before too long, I took Maddie’s cue and went to sleep.    After driving 850 miles in one day, I don’t think even an earthquake could have woken me up.  The next morning, I drove the final 450 miles home to my girls, my husband…
 
And life on the farm without Lucy.

*Today’s post on Sexy Makes a Comeback:  Daily Make-up.*

Categories
Kids Life in general Parenting

Laughter Trumps Tears

Instead of writing about how those two mommies at Alison’s gymnastics class were nasty and rude to me, again;

Instead of blogging about how both of my kids finally, after 17 months, slept through the night for two consecutive nights, only to follow it up by waking up every night since, one of them for hours;

Instead of telling you all how my sweet baby girl has suddenly become a tiny terrorizer;

Instead of focusing on how tired and frustrated I am;

Instead of even thinking about how messy my house is;

I’m going to talk about what made me laugh out loud today.

I got Blythe out of her crib this morning, and she went out to the living room, calling, “Dad-dee!  Dad-dee!”.  This one’s a daddy’s girl, I’m telling you.  She can never get enough of that man.

Next she ran into our bedroom and called, “Ba-abe!  Ba-abe!”  And is it scary to anyone else that my 17 month old kid knows mommy calls daddy “babe” in the bedroom?

Having no luck there, Blythe ran to the office, where she called out, “Jem-mee!  Jem-mee!”.  Who knew she notice that at work, he’s “Jeremy”, not “daddy” or “babe”?  Not me, although I think maybe I need to stop underestimating her powers of observation.

Having run out of names and places to try, she turned her face toward me with a hilarious look I can hardly describe.  Eyebrows up, lips pursed, cheeks puffed out, she said, “Gah mo-nin?  Gah Mohhhhh-nin, Jem-mee?” in this exhasperated little voice.  Clearly, the child needed to say good morning to her father.

Through my laughter I told her he must have gone outside.  She shrugged her shoulders, ran for the fridge and said, “Juice?  Juice, pease?”. 

Because, everyone knows – if you can’t find your daddy, juice is a perfectly logical substitute.