Well, I guess playtime is over. Like it or not, Easter Vacation has come to an end. I must admist that it was a very restful break. That of course is only because I didn't do anything productive or useful! Oh, I had big plans......I was going to clean out the closets, vacuum the dust bunnies out from under the couch, finish my taxes (ooopps!), rearrange my sock drawer.......you know all that Spring Cleaning stuff. Instead, I slept in late every day and caught up on Days of Our Lives. At least I got some last minute laundry done, the kitchen cleaned, and the floors swept and mopped before going to bed tonight.
Starting tomorrow it is all down hill. Just a couple of weeks and it will be testing time. After that the kids pretty much know the game is over. Teachers are lucky to get their attention long enough to collect lunch money and say the flag salute. It is good time time to start those "end-of-the-year" projects that kids love so much!
Then it will be June! Maybe I can get some of those house related projects done then........
Wish me luck!
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Friday, April 13, 2012
The Great Divide
"Americans have never been more divided." I hear this quote often and it always makes me stop and wonder two things: Is that really true? If it is true, then why?
I think of the first question: Is this really true? Yes, in some respects, Americans are very divided on a number of issues: healthcare, immigration, entitlements, the environment. But, those are just issues. Are Americans really divided against one another just because they don't agree on certain issues? And, does that mean they are more divided than ever? I don't think that it is true at all.
I mean honestly, do you really believe that Americans are more divided now than they were during, let's just say, oh, The Civil War? Seriously, during the Civil War, Americans were so divided that several states actually voted to leave the Union and start their own government! Now really, have things gotten that bad?
Some would lead you to believe that is the case. Recently we have had debates over who is reponsible for healthcare. Is it the government, the insurance companies or the individual? Ask three different people and I'm pretty sure you will get three different answers. Legal immigration versus illegal immigration - that is guaranteed to fire up a debate. And now we have the "Mommy War." Who works harder? Stay-at-home moms or working moms? It seems to me that the biggest war we are fighting right now is which group of people will claim victory over "I'm the biggest victim" status. Class warfare and race warfare divide us even deeper.
All these manufactured "wars" meant to keep people from uniting over their commanilties is what divides the nation. Are we all really that different? Of course we are! We are each and everyone of us an individual! No individual is exactly like another. As an indiviual I represent many different groups. I'm a mom, a wife, a woman, a teacher. So I guess I have nothing in common with dads, husbands, men, and people outside of education. I'm a Christian, a conservative, a Republican. I couldn't possibly have the same hopes as a non-religious, liberal Democrat. I'm a consumer, a taxpayer, a government employee. I'm in a union, I support free markets, and public education. Those just don't make any sense at all. I am actually in groups that oppose each other. So which special interest group am I? Other people might be in some of these groups, but many others make up other types of groups. How do you decide which group most defines you? I say NONE! No one group can define or meet every interest of any one person!
I guess it is impossible. We are all just too different to come together. There isn't any one group that shares all of the same interests. Is there? What happened to just being an American? Let me see.....yep all of my special interests are part of being an American. The spirit of the individual is what makes America great! All Americans believe in the right to life. We expect our lives to be safe and protected by the government as well as the lives of others and their property. Liberty......do we have to give that up to be protected? No. Americans crave freedom! Freedom of speech, religion, assembly. Freedom of choice! Freedom to pursue that which makes us happy!
Back to the divide. Why are we divided? Because we let them divide us! To many people have given away freedom just to be controlled by those who will give them the most freebies. In 200 plus years we have managed to go from "Give me liberty, or give me death!" To: "Gimm-me! Gimm-me! Gimm-me!" We are divided by envy and jealousy of what others have if we don't have the same thing. Feelings drive people to do and say horrible things to those who are different because they are focused on their differences. Why? Our leaders are only focused on those differences. They use those differences to divide and conquer. To conquer the American spirit.
We can learn a lot from the Civil War. People were divided more then than ever. And for good reason! Slavery was a wicked practice! But are things so wicked now that they cannot be restored? Absolutely not! Abraham Lincoln said at the time, "A nation divided against itself shall not stand." He united our nation after one of the most perilous times in our history. Now it is up to Americans. It is time to unite. Stop the great divide!
I think of the first question: Is this really true? Yes, in some respects, Americans are very divided on a number of issues: healthcare, immigration, entitlements, the environment. But, those are just issues. Are Americans really divided against one another just because they don't agree on certain issues? And, does that mean they are more divided than ever? I don't think that it is true at all.
I mean honestly, do you really believe that Americans are more divided now than they were during, let's just say, oh, The Civil War? Seriously, during the Civil War, Americans were so divided that several states actually voted to leave the Union and start their own government! Now really, have things gotten that bad?
Some would lead you to believe that is the case. Recently we have had debates over who is reponsible for healthcare. Is it the government, the insurance companies or the individual? Ask three different people and I'm pretty sure you will get three different answers. Legal immigration versus illegal immigration - that is guaranteed to fire up a debate. And now we have the "Mommy War." Who works harder? Stay-at-home moms or working moms? It seems to me that the biggest war we are fighting right now is which group of people will claim victory over "I'm the biggest victim" status. Class warfare and race warfare divide us even deeper.
All these manufactured "wars" meant to keep people from uniting over their commanilties is what divides the nation. Are we all really that different? Of course we are! We are each and everyone of us an individual! No individual is exactly like another. As an indiviual I represent many different groups. I'm a mom, a wife, a woman, a teacher. So I guess I have nothing in common with dads, husbands, men, and people outside of education. I'm a Christian, a conservative, a Republican. I couldn't possibly have the same hopes as a non-religious, liberal Democrat. I'm a consumer, a taxpayer, a government employee. I'm in a union, I support free markets, and public education. Those just don't make any sense at all. I am actually in groups that oppose each other. So which special interest group am I? Other people might be in some of these groups, but many others make up other types of groups. How do you decide which group most defines you? I say NONE! No one group can define or meet every interest of any one person!
I guess it is impossible. We are all just too different to come together. There isn't any one group that shares all of the same interests. Is there? What happened to just being an American? Let me see.....yep all of my special interests are part of being an American. The spirit of the individual is what makes America great! All Americans believe in the right to life. We expect our lives to be safe and protected by the government as well as the lives of others and their property. Liberty......do we have to give that up to be protected? No. Americans crave freedom! Freedom of speech, religion, assembly. Freedom of choice! Freedom to pursue that which makes us happy!
Back to the divide. Why are we divided? Because we let them divide us! To many people have given away freedom just to be controlled by those who will give them the most freebies. In 200 plus years we have managed to go from "Give me liberty, or give me death!" To: "Gimm-me! Gimm-me! Gimm-me!" We are divided by envy and jealousy of what others have if we don't have the same thing. Feelings drive people to do and say horrible things to those who are different because they are focused on their differences. Why? Our leaders are only focused on those differences. They use those differences to divide and conquer. To conquer the American spirit.
We can learn a lot from the Civil War. People were divided more then than ever. And for good reason! Slavery was a wicked practice! But are things so wicked now that they cannot be restored? Absolutely not! Abraham Lincoln said at the time, "A nation divided against itself shall not stand." He united our nation after one of the most perilous times in our history. Now it is up to Americans. It is time to unite. Stop the great divide!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Do I Hunger for the Hunger Games?
To read or not to read? That is the question. My daughter is just about to finish reading Mockingjay, the last installment in the Hunger Games Trilogy. She has been hounding me to read the series myself. I haven't decided if I hunger for the Hunger Games or not.
I remember when the Harry Potter series came out. All of my students were reading them and proclaiming their greatness. My step-son read them all, and I remember buying the Goblet of Fire at Target for him as soon as it came out. I even took him to see the first Harry Potter movie as soon as it was playing in theaters. After that I only saw the next two when they were playing on HBO. To this day, I have not read any of the books in the series or seen the other movies.
Fast forward a few years, and I found myself buying my step-son the second book in the Twilight series; I know de ja vu, right? My best friend called and told me I should read them and that I would really like them. Vampires? Not really my thing. I never read any of the Ann Rice vampire novels and I didn't care much for Interview with a Vampire, even if it had both Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt (before I decided that I didn't much care for Brad Pitt) in starring roles. So, I still haven't read any of the Twilight books, nor have I seen any of the movies. No Team Edward or Team Jacob issues for me.
So now, we have the Hunger Games. My daughter just had to go see the movie. Because I knew it had violence and teens killing teens, I was just a little concerned. But, she had already read the first book and she pulled her "all my friends' parents are lettling them go" sulk. I talked to others who had read it and was told that a twelve-year-old would be fine seeing the movie. So we made a date, and she and I went to see it together. By the way, some, not all of her friends were there.
After all the hype, I told her we better get there early in case they were sold out. Turns out they weren't sold out and there wasn't even a line. We bought our popcorn and sodas and easily grabbed our seats. She was simply beside herself. I figured if it impressed me as much as it impressed her I would probably read the book. I thought it was a decent movie. I still can decide if I want to read the book/books.
When it comes to recent trends, I have found that I'm just not much of a joiner. It took forever for my vampire loving friend to talk me into joining Facebook. I finally did. That is a whole-nother story by the way. I have never tried to tweet; I never planked; and, although I respect the guy imensely, I still haven't Tebowed.
When you think about it, I have become a bit of a nerd in my old-age. Which is funny because I was quite trendy in my youth. At least I thought I was. Now I just like to find and do the things that I enjoy simply because I enjoy them. Lately, I have developed a passion for reading history and political books. I love to watch the news and listen to talk-radio. When it comes to music, I have turned into my father. We both think our generation had the best music ever. I have learned that we both may be right.
Anyhow, back to the topic. Do I hunger for the Hunger Games? Not yet. We will see if I develop an appetite for them or not. For now, I am satifying my literary appetite with a great book on American History. Who knows, maybe this summer I will read them, not because of the trend, but because I feel like it........
I remember when the Harry Potter series came out. All of my students were reading them and proclaiming their greatness. My step-son read them all, and I remember buying the Goblet of Fire at Target for him as soon as it came out. I even took him to see the first Harry Potter movie as soon as it was playing in theaters. After that I only saw the next two when they were playing on HBO. To this day, I have not read any of the books in the series or seen the other movies.
Fast forward a few years, and I found myself buying my step-son the second book in the Twilight series; I know de ja vu, right? My best friend called and told me I should read them and that I would really like them. Vampires? Not really my thing. I never read any of the Ann Rice vampire novels and I didn't care much for Interview with a Vampire, even if it had both Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt (before I decided that I didn't much care for Brad Pitt) in starring roles. So, I still haven't read any of the Twilight books, nor have I seen any of the movies. No Team Edward or Team Jacob issues for me.
So now, we have the Hunger Games. My daughter just had to go see the movie. Because I knew it had violence and teens killing teens, I was just a little concerned. But, she had already read the first book and she pulled her "all my friends' parents are lettling them go" sulk. I talked to others who had read it and was told that a twelve-year-old would be fine seeing the movie. So we made a date, and she and I went to see it together. By the way, some, not all of her friends were there.
After all the hype, I told her we better get there early in case they were sold out. Turns out they weren't sold out and there wasn't even a line. We bought our popcorn and sodas and easily grabbed our seats. She was simply beside herself. I figured if it impressed me as much as it impressed her I would probably read the book. I thought it was a decent movie. I still can decide if I want to read the book/books.
When it comes to recent trends, I have found that I'm just not much of a joiner. It took forever for my vampire loving friend to talk me into joining Facebook. I finally did. That is a whole-nother story by the way. I have never tried to tweet; I never planked; and, although I respect the guy imensely, I still haven't Tebowed.
When you think about it, I have become a bit of a nerd in my old-age. Which is funny because I was quite trendy in my youth. At least I thought I was. Now I just like to find and do the things that I enjoy simply because I enjoy them. Lately, I have developed a passion for reading history and political books. I love to watch the news and listen to talk-radio. When it comes to music, I have turned into my father. We both think our generation had the best music ever. I have learned that we both may be right.
Anyhow, back to the topic. Do I hunger for the Hunger Games? Not yet. We will see if I develop an appetite for them or not. For now, I am satifying my literary appetite with a great book on American History. Who knows, maybe this summer I will read them, not because of the trend, but because I feel like it........
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Because I Feel Like It
So I said I wanted to start a blog.....so I started a blog. Why did I start a blog? Because I feel like it. Sometimes I just feel the need to speak out. Sometimes I just have random thoughts. Sometimes I have a lot to say, but not enough time or room to say it. Now I do. And so Because I Feel Like is born.
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