We're all to blame

One of the campus billboards regularly posts a question concerning something about our constitution, politics, etc. Many times, the college kids who post sound like the young and naive kids they are.

But sometimes I read a post that is so cynical and yet so accurate that I wonder if Jon Stewart has been on campus!

The current question is - Who is to blame for the federal government shutdown?

The same answers you see on social media and hear from media were the first to pop up followed by the typical rants against the opposite party. But then a smart kid pulled out her pen and wrote the following response to the question:

EVERYONE

The first time I noticed that answer, I stopped and looked at the board. The longer I stood there, the more I realized the poster was totally correct.

We elect every politician in this country.

Our gross error is in why we elect the people we do. Are we voting people in by the content of their character or by the talking points we are spoon fed during an election? Does anyone research each candidate, review their voting records, learn which lobbyists and corporations donate the most to the campaigns before voting?

Even more telling is how polarized we ourselves have become. We rant about Republicans and Democrats not working together, but look at what we've taught them. There is no middle ground anymore. We won't allow the opposing sides to work together and make compromise.

You are either against abortion or you're a slut. You are either for the death penalty or you're a commie liberal tree hugger.  You are either a person who wants sane gun laws or you're a right-wing survivalist nut. We make wild demands and throw accusations like Mardi Gras beads.

We know the system is broken and has been for some time but are still shocked when things like the shutdown occur. And the broken system begins with each and every one of us. We vote but we don't volunteer for a campaign. We vote but we don't attend city council meetings. We vote but we don't research the issues, talk to others, and then contact our officials with an intelligent request.


We routinely complain but never DO anything.

Things will never change until you and I get active in the process of running our country. Our elected officials are REPRESENTATIVES of our beliefs, our ideals.

It's a matter of electing someone who can make the hard decisions. Someone who can do what is the best for all not just a select few. Someone who will pass laws for the betterment of our children's futures and not just immediate gratification for us today. Someone who is not so caught up in the next election 4 years away that the only concern is not to piss off the lobbyists and corporations who will help them get re-elected.

The system won't fix itself.

Congress certainly can't fix it.

It's up to us.

We the people.

If it remains broken, we only have ourselves to blame.

Goofychick speaks: What's Snot got to do with it?

Goofychick speaks: What's Snot got to do with it?: Did you know the human body produces over 1 liter of mucus each and every day ? Many doctors consider mucus to be the oil that holds our eng...

What's Snot got to do with it?

Did you know the human body produces over 1 liter of mucus each and every day ? Many doctors consider mucus to be the oil that holds our engines together. Check out a good article on WebMD Truth About Mucus.

I don't know about you, but I think somehow I am getting extra lube jobs !!!

My allergies have been on over drive for about a week. Many people have no concept about allergies and these lovely people keep getting "free" advice. For future reference, here are 5 things to never tell someone with hay fever/ragweed induced allergies unless you want to get that look. Or a slap upside the head. Or maybe that look and a slap upside the head.

1. Just get on antibiotics - they cure everything.

  No dimwit. Antibiotics only cure infections caused by bacteria. My ragweed allergies will not be helped by antibiotics.

2.  My mother says to eat local honey - it has always worked for her.

   And what was your mom like before she ate the local honey? I've always been a honey eater no matter where I've lived. And I can tell you that it has no affect on my allergies. In theory, I suppose for people with certain types of allergies it could be helpful or with milder reactions to certain pollen. Just doesn't work for me so stop telling me to do it.

3.  Gargle with (insert favorite remedy).

    Yes, gargling certain things can offer short-term relief. Salt can help spit up that icky mucus. However, it also leaves the throat raw. Baking soda is a milder option which offers limited relief. And yes, I already know this and do this. However, gargling in and of itself is not enough to keep the mucus from coating my throat and making it difficult to breath, swallow, sleep, talk, etc...

4.   You should get tested and take allergy shots.

    Been there. Done that. Doesn't help. Unfortunately for me, I am ultra sensitive to the certain trees and grasses that populate east Texas. I experienced relief when I moved to Ohio. I think the cold winters really helped - things DIED !! However, now that I'm back home, I just have to deal. I take my allergy meds religiously and they mostly work. There are just sometimes when I need the extra help of a cortisone shot to jump start the relief. Allergy shots for me haven't been useful - I can never get built up to a maintenance dose because I continually have reactions to the shots. If I had milder allergies, shots could be more useful.

  And I don't just run to the doctor and get a cortisone shot once a week. It basically is useful once or twice a year - when enough time has passed to know that the regular round of allergy meds is not going to be enough to kick it. So just because I've sneezed for a few days doesn't mean my allergies are really bad enough to warrant the snot shot (as my doctor calls it).

   Trust me, when I move again, I will go to a place that will be kinder to my allergies.

5.  Oh, I suffer from allergies all the time and it never gets me down. You just need to buck up.

   Oh really ? And allergies affect everyone the same way? You are a genius you are. All those medicines are just a marketing ploy too, I know.

  Allergies are like many other things - what affects one person in one way, will have the opposite affect on another. What kicks one person's ass will do absolutely nothing to another person. Just like I can eat peanuts every day, all day, and enjoy while my mom can eat just 1 peanut and immediately start to swell.

I DO buck up. I never miss work unless my doctor tells me to stay home (which he has this time to rest my vocal cords so my laryngitis will leave very soon) or when my allergies have me physically at the point where work is not an option (like when my head is ready to explode or my coughing up a lung would be disquieting in the office).

So thank you everyone for caring.

Now shut up !!

Tidbits

Even before the Internet, I was a news junkie. Drove my friends bonkers. Now I literally have the world at my fingertips. It drives my friends buggier. Here are my top 5 tipdbits for this week:


1. Nationwide poll shows Tea Party less popular than atheists and Muslims.


2. There IS a 5 second rule. Actually, even longer is acceptable for some foods.


3. The USA is still China's bitch.


4. The state of Texas has only received 40% of our usual rain fall.


5. There are over 2,000 places to buy chocolate bacon candy bars online.

Labels and hype

A recent posting on another blog (http://blog.garrisonbros.com/2011/08/10/whiskey-bourbon-and-barrels/comment-page-1/#comment-347) brings up several interesting points. Mr. Garrison ably and expertly discusses the skill of the small craft distilleries, so there is no need to add to that discussion - except to say - support your local merchants !

But it seems like a new movement is afoot to water down what should be closely guarded and trademarked names of "Made in Texas" and "Texas whiskey."

I did a quick Google search and couldn't find any definitions for "made in TX."

This is troubling.

If I buy a product from another state or country, then add something to it, I can sell that product as made in Texas.

I could buy a carton of t-shirts and tye dye them with state colors then sew on a label "Jenny's Made In Texas Ts."

I could ship a carton of thread to some Guatemalan 5-year olds, pay them $1 each to make knitted caps. Then when they are shipped back, I glue on a state flag and poof - Made in Texas.


I am proud to be a Texan. I like to support local merchants and vendors who make products in my state before buying from others. When I can't buy 'my' local, then I prefer to buy from another state's local merchants/vendors.


But there does need to be some regulation that what I buy is actually "local."

What I learned today

I'm a voyeur. There, glad I finally said it. I've always enjoyed people watching. Some would say it's because of my thespian background, others would say it's just because I am weird. Everyone would be partially correct!

Anyhoo, here are the top 5 things I learned today just by watching others. It will amaze and astound you.

1.  Don't drive while holding an ice cream cone - especially in Texas once the temps are above 70 - which is almost year round. Trying to steer, lick, avoid traffic, and talk on your cell phone is just impossible.

2.  Don't play throw the ball with your dog along a busy intersection. That is just begging to hear your child cry for a week.

3.  Don't come to work if you are heavily medicated, act like you're heavily medicated, or are just stupid. You really can't get your job done and you just annoy everyone else.

4. Telling your 3-year old child "no" in Wal-Mart only makes the kid cry louder. So just lie to the kid - by the time you get to the check out, the kid won't remember what he wanted.

5.  Eating chocolate cake for breakfast really doesn't give you a tummy ache.

Don't you want to be bi-polar?

Okay now before all of my mental health professional friends freak, this post isn't to make fun of anyone with mental illness or to make light of illnesses of any kind. That said, read on.


Raise your hand if you aren't taking any mood-altering, mood-enhancing, mentally energizing or emotionally stabilizing drug?


Just what I thought.. I am the ONLY PERSON with my hand UP.


I've actually asked my general practitioners before for something, anything, to take the edge of. I've had brutal jobs where I stayed stressed to the max and gained pounds and pounds. Yet every doctor always told me - you don't need anything; you're normal.


Now what kind of doctor tells a patient - no you don't need drugs? Am I the only person who seems to routinely find ethical doctors everywhere I turn?