What exactly is a furlough day?

I am not questioning the return of back pay for government employees after the recent shutdown.  I think that the employees deserve to get their back pay.  I just wonder why when teachers or other professionals are furloughed they do not ever get their back pay.

Isn't it stupid that the government shutdown was a vacation for the employees?  I do realize that they had to wait it out and this may cause them to have a financial set back, but they are getting pay for not working. 

I looked up the definition of the word furlough and of course it means something different for the military, but it indicates temporary layoffs in the civilian workforce.

Isn't it ridiculous that the government shut down stopped people from working and then paid them back?  Think about how far behind they are at their jobs.  It is just another stupid offshoot from our elected officials. 

What can we learn from a Movie?

I

The Captain Phillips Movie was really terrific.  It isn't for the faint of spirit.  It is so well-done that you actually feel like you were there in the middle of the hijacking. 

The thing that impressed me was that I actually was scared and yet somewhat sympathetic at the same time.

I knew the outcome of the situation-since this actually happened in 2009. 

 

I almost had a confrontation with the asshole that sat behind me because he kept making derogatory comments about the hijackers.  The whole point of this movie is that we as Americans can understand the abject poverty( that western nations have created) and what it forces some people to do.  I was thinking how can you watch this movie and not understand this!

 

Of course I do not advocate the use of force or pirating for profit- but if you have lost your livelihood, maybe we all can at least understand the reason why the pirates did this.  It also helps we Americans understand how we are perceived by others that are a lot less fortunate than we are.

 

 

This is the result of day 16 of the government shutdown!

Maybe I  am really suffering from cabin fever since I have a cast on my ankle and can't easily get outside.  My daughter was walking the dog yesterday and saw this sign by the community doggie waste basket.  I found it ha-lar-ious!

In case you can not read the whole message it says-  YOU UNCONSIDERATE LAZY ASS!
I guess it was to much to bend down and pick up after your big DOG!(mess) Do better next time I'm Watching!!!

Now what part of this reminds you Ted Cruz and the tea party?  Is it the exemplary grammar?  Is it the paranoid threats?  Does it make you feel better that regular people are just as big babies as Congress?

Thanks to my  neighbor for making me laugh today!  Congress supposedly made a deal while I was researching this important blog.  We will see if they finally have graduated to the kindergarten level!

Momma T

Affordable Health Care Act

There is probably no single issue that is more controversial today than the Affordable Health Care Act or Obama care. I really have tried to understand the ramifications of this bill that the House of Representatives has tried over 40 times to dismantle.  It is mystifying to me that people that really need affordable health care and complain about how expensive health care is are against this plan.

I am a retired educator.  My monthly check deduction for health insurance is $341.  My dental insurance deduction is $110. This means that 18% of my net income is used to pay for medical insurance.  Now that would be OK, if the insurance company actually paid the bills when I need to use the doctor, but sadly that is not the case.  For example- I recently had a small mole removed for analysis.  The results came back that it was abnormal, so I had a larger sample removed and analyzed.  I spent over $200 of my own money because my "deductible" hadn't been used up yet.  My deductible is $4000 per year.  I spend over $5000 per year on monthly medical insurance payments.  This means that technically my medical bills will not cover me fully until I have spent over 28% of my total annual income on medical bills.  I do not consider this to be affordable health care.  I am insured and I always have been insured.  I have put thousands of dollars out there over the last 31 years that have not been used.

I recently was hit by a car while bicycling and had to be put in a ambulance to go to the emergency room.  I am truly terrified to get the medical bills from this because I think this will be considered as out of network and then not count as part of my individual deductible. This will then be all my cost.  I also visited an orthopedic doctor after and she wanted me to get an MRI, because there is definitely more to the injury.  I decided not to go, simply because I can't afford to pay for an MRI.  My daughter had one earlier this year and my out of pocket cost was over $400. 

I guess the point I am trying to make is even when you do everything you are supposed to do.  You go to yearly checkups and floss, you  work thirty one years for the same employer, medical issues can
sideline you.  I am lucky to be relatively healthy.  I have several friends that spend 30-40% of their net salary on medical care because they have diseases like Type 1 Diabetes I or Chron's Disease.
I am not even discussing the people I know that work for themselves and can't afford health care. 

Georgia practically opted out of the Affordable Health Care Act.  Doesn't it make sense that if more people are paying into the system that care would eventually be more affordable?  I don't think that medical issues should be political.  People should be able to go to the doctor and not be afraid of the bill.  I try to read the paper each day and understand where all this is going and I am at a loss.  Help!

Go Gaga

If you didn't see Lady Gaga on WWHL the other night-do yourself a favor watch it on line.  It is definitely worth your time.  Cheers to Lady G for her frank, honest comments.  You all know how much I love Andy!  I know that Lady Gaga will receive media attention for her frank comments on taking the drug Molly- but I applaud her honesty and she did say that she wouldn't encourage anyone to do this drug.  I also liked when she was asked to discuss harmful comments made towards her that she wouldn't name anyone because that would give them acknowledgement as a celebrity.  I thought she was really classy and it made me like her even more.  GO GAGA!

The "Real" NJ Drama

 

It is painful to read about Teresa and Joe's indictment drama.  It is difficult to take a side because I think that even if they did something wrong with their tax statements- take a look at them.  They aren't the sharpest tools in the shed.  They have allowed their family to be filmed throughout the beginning of their days in their mansion.  Who can forget Joe giving Teresa 100K to spend on furniture.  She took us on the journey on television from season one until now.  We saw the moving into the mansion, the first housewarming, the famous flipping of the table, a tug of hair, a lavish Christmas, bankruptcy, a scaled down Christmas, a family split and a family on the mend.  Do we really need to put these two in jail?  I think they have been the most real of the Housewife franchises and the judge should be able to just view the tapes.

I agree that falsifying tax documents is wrong.  Can't they be given a chance due to their obvious lack of knowledge about most things that involve common sense.  Don't get me wrong here- I love the Guidice's, but they really shouldn't be accused of a crime such as this and actually serve time in jail.  I just read about the big banks like Goldman Sach's settling for a suit in which they didn't have to admit any wrong doing in the financial debacle with the mortgage industry and they had to pay half a billion dollars in a settlement.  That is equal to about three days of a year's profits.  It is sad that there is such inequity in our legal system. 

Come on judge- give the Guidice's a break.  They are our favorite guilty pleasure and they have four cute little girls.  They clearly were not smart enough to hide anything, since they flaunted their riches right in front of America.  They need to pay back they money they owe.  I guess we will have a few more cook books out after this.  Just my thoughts.....

Seizure of umbilical cords?

I have just heard about a law in Mississippi that will require any baby born to a teenage mother who hasn't named a father for the baby to have its umbilical cord analyzed for its DNA. 

I am just going to let you sit and think about that one.......



OK- now this is supposed to put a halt to teenage pregnancy. I guess it is supposed to stop fathers from raping their daughters and having inbreed babies.

I can't think of anything more intrusive than this.  The poor kid has had to suffer for 9 months with the stigma of being another "statistic", then her rights are violated once again for a DNA test.  Is there some magic DNA registry that will automatically prove who the father is?  Is the tea party OK with spending hundreds of dollars for each baby born to have a DNA test, when their whole mantra is less government intervention in our lives?  This is the stupidest thing I have ever heard of. 

Here is my suggestion to the good people of Mississippi.  I think before every legislative session, each congressman should have their private parts swabbed.  This way we can make sure that they are not fornicating with any prostitutes or having extra marital affairs. Think about how many problems would be solved on Capital Hill.  And we should have a registry for every person in this country with a sample of their DNA.  That way we can catch the criminals much more easily.  We can rule out babies that have genetic abnormalities before they are born. We can run genetic profiles on people and help them with their career choices.  We can reduce insurance costs by getting rid of genetic diseases.  Does this sound familiar?  It is the theme of GATTACA.  Watch the movie and learn something!

Fruitvale station

In light of the disturbing Zimmerman verdict, I recommend seeing this film.  I agree with President Obama in that you can not understand what is like to be a young black man unless you are actually in their shoes.  This movie tells the story of the day in life of  Oscar Grant.  He was killed by a security guard in Oakland's transit train station in 2008.  The film sort of looks like a documentary because the camera just follows him through his day.  I feel that by showing his love for his family and his struggles with his girlfriend and his recent job loss that he is presented not as a martyr but as a real person, flaws and all.  Many people would look at Oscar and the way he dresses and just see a "thug", but he was much more than that.  The incident happened in front of a whole train of New Year's celebrators and was filmed by many. Octavia Spencer was excellent as his mother and Michael B. Jordan did a great job as Oscar.  Of course the movie has a sad ending, but it really was well done.  Give it a try.

One last comment on racism and the verdict

This weekend I spoke to two of my friends about the Trayvon Martin verdict and I was surprised at the outrage that they had for President Obama's intervention on Friday.  I was very impressed with his courage to come out and express his feelings on the verdict.  I thought he showed real raw emotion and still kept himself very presidential.  That has been his legacy throughout his term in office.  He has been voted into office during a time of extreme polarization.  I agreed with him expressing his experience as a young teen and the hurt he must of felt when being followed around at a department store or hearing the clicks of the locks on the car doors as he walked by.

32 years ago, I was a student in college and my friends and I got tickets to a Jimmy Buffet concert five hours away in Tallahassee, Florida.  We stopped at a convenience store on the way and asked to use the bathroom.  The clerk told us there wasn't a bathroom.  After some customers left the store (guess what race they were), we were told that we could use the bathroom now.  My friend didn't hesitate- she said- that is OK we would rather pee our pants and she grabbed my hand and we left.  I will never forget the look on the clerk's face and I my deep pride in my friend.  I always felt angry with myself, for not having the presence of mind to initiate such a response.

The sad thing is, here we are 32 years later and racism is still around, ugly as ever.  When I was in 6th grade, my teacher did the "blue eye experiment" with my class.  This was a famous exercise created by Jane Elliot and first done in 1968 after the murder of Martin Luther King.  The idea was to teach children who had never experienced racism, what it felt like.  Believe me, as the person that was subjected to the temporary torment-it was not any fun.  I had the blue eyes, so I had to go to the end of the line.  I was told that the blue eyed children were liars and sneaky and I went home for lunch that day and begged my mother not to make me go back to school.  We were told after lunch what the purpose of the exercise was and I will never forget that feeling and I was only subjected to the evil for four hours.


When I was talking to my friend yesterday she expressed an outrage that President Obama had the audacity to speak out on a court case that was decided fairly and legally.  I did express my opinion on the subject (wow-courage) and I hope I was able to convince her that what he did was necessary and admirable. I remember when we were teaching together during the O.J. Simpson verdict and her reaction to our students after the not guilty verdict.  I definitely wasn't happy with the verdict then.  I felt for the victims- Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman.  I did understand our predominately African American student population's ecstatic response to the verdict.  It was a dig at "the Man". 

The truth is that all of us have a little racism inside.  You can't help it.  You are a product of your environment.  I was raised in an all white community by the beach.  I never really interacted with any brown people until I went to college in Atlanta.  I then proceeded to spend most of my teaching career teaching in predominately African American schools. I had to work to make certain that I did not exhibit any undue unfairness in my classes.  I will never understand what it feels like to be discriminated against or profiled.  But if our country can not come together and try to understand other's feelings, we will not be able to overcome the emotional chains of racism.

When we were in Europe- the headline story for several days was Racism in America.  Paula Deen and the Zimmerman Trial were the top story.  Does this mean that America is the only place in the world that is Racist?  No- we are the country to has the most diversity in the world. I felt weird in Europe because almost everyone was white.  There were almost no black people on the cruise or anywhere we were in Europe.  The truth is the diversity in America is what has made our nation so strong.  We need to embrace our differences and try to learn from our mistakes in order to become the best society possible.

PS: Ugly Americans?

One amendment to my last rant on Ugly Americans.  We rarely see a world map when learning about the weather.  I believe if we Americans became used to viewing the world map every time we watched the news, it would give us much more than the temperatures.  When I saw this foe the first time on our two week vacation- it made me realize that it is winter in the southern hemisphere.  Now deep down I know this, but it isn't something I think about in relation to my daily activities.  Looking at the map of the world puts everything into perspective. 

When I was looking for an image to put on this blog, I asked for weather images.  All I got was pictures of the United States.  I had to change my search to world weather in order to find the image above.  Why is this?  Think about that!  It is so simple yet so deep!

Ugly Americans?

 

We have just come home from our European vacation.  We visited London, Rome, Capri, Pompeii, Sorrento, Santorini, Mykonos and Athens. The trip was a whir of sights and delights.  The people were all very sweet and gracious.  I did see a few "typical" ugly Americans, but in fact I thought some of the Brits were even worse. When I say ugly, I mean that these people treat the waiters with disdain and try to have the food made their way instead of trying to adapt to the culture they are visiting. Two women in Athens were eating breakfast at the table next to us.  They wouldn't eat anything at the buffet. The buffet was not like a Holiday Inn. There were a lot a great choices. I made myself a bagel with lox, cream cheese, capers and tomato.  They had to have there eggs a certain way and so they ordered from the kitchen. They didn't like the eggs they got and they were loud and dismissive with the poor waiter. Then they argued with the maitre d and they were obnoxious. They were a real embarrassment to America.

 

If you consider a trip to Europe-here are a couple of things that I noticed along the way:

 

1.  "C" doesn't always stand for cold in every language.  In fact in both Italy and Greece, it stands for hot water!

 

2. European tourists are notoriously cheap.  They don't tip, so many restaurants have the tip included on the bill. The truth is that Americans are admired for their generosity( in the tipping department). My husband works at a restaurant here in Atlanta and he says if a table of people from Europe come to eat, the waiters add 15 percent to the bill or else they won't get a tip. 

 

3. We only visited the tourist areas of each of the cities so it was difficult to get a read on the actual vibe of the native people.  Our tour guide in Rome said that the actual inhabitants of the city leave

 Rome each summer and the only people that stay are the ones in the tourist industry.

 

4. Customs and Immigration is surprisingly quick and easy except in America and England.  I was very surprised when we flew into Rome and out of Athens, the security was quick and easy to pass through.

 

5. If you ever have the chance to visit another country-do it.  You can see pictures of the coliseum or the Trevi fountain, but nothing is the same as actually experiencing it in person. Words can not express the beauty inside the Vatican.  The art is really amazing. The picture below is one in a whole hall that looks like statues and is really a painting.  The water in the Mediterranean is really bright blue. The oldest buildings in America are 200-300 years old.  In Europe they are almost 3000 years old! Our tour guides were fantastic.  They were passionate about their cities and their history.  You can sit through Western Civilization I and II and not learn as much as you do from just being there.

 

 

 Amazing!

 

 

 

 

Where is the Justice?

 

I wasn't actually present for the confrontation that ended Trayvon's life, but I have to say that from my perspective doesn't the verdict seem to be an injustice?

 

If George Zimmerman was driving drunk and killed Trayvon with his car, that would be a definite jail sentence.  Why are we so afraid to prosecute a vigilante gun death?

 

You all know how much I hate the use of guns.  Now George is free and again allowed to use his gun.  Doesn't this scare people?  He overreacted in the past and now he gets a second chance to over react.

 

This case is really about the unnecessary death of an unarmed teenager.  The right side of this country supported Zimmerman and used the case to reinforce their stand your ground laws and further the divide on the race issue.

 

Is there anyone in out there that is on the right that can see this through the eyes of a parent that no longer has a teenage son? No one deserves to die no matter how they are acting or what they are wearing.  I don't believe that George Zimmerman killed Trayvon on purpose, I do feel that he probably feels really bad about what happened- but isn't that what the manslaughter sentence is all about?

 

 

What the Frack?

One of the many differences I noticed when visiting Europe was the lack of news stories about murder and violence.  In fact all the news on the BBC and other news channels was focused on racism in America( Paula and George Z.), Wimbledon and how England has discovered enough natural gas to make the self sufficient for the next 40 years. 

I found the fact the Brits don't support the sale of guns, have socialized medicine and will not grow any genetically modified food and yet embrace the blasting of the underground shale quite a paradox.  I did see many large wind turbines, which is very admirable.  I just thought that our British cousins, that always look down on our reckless destruction of our bodies and environment would think twice about the cracking of the ground below their little isle.

I definitely am worried about fracking.  I definitely have watched this technology emerge and I am not convinced that is without problems.  I have watched both the Gas land documentaries and frankly I do worry about our ground water and the shifting of our natural fault lines.  Is their any correlation to the number of earthquakes and nearby fracking?

I wish that we could really throw our money towards more solar and wind power. I have heard that some scientists believe that we could fully power the energy needs of all people with these technologies and they do not create methane or carbon dioxide by products.  The excitement that the Brits showed towards their early experiments with fracking was very disappointing to me.

European Vacation

 

My daughter and I just got home from a two week vacation to England, Italy and Greece.  It was my first visit to any of these countries. London was a beautiful city and that is where we started the vacation, so lets chat about the Brits first.

Our first impression of London was the enormous "ques" to enter with a passport.  I think we had to wait for at least one hour.  After we got into our cab, the next surprising thing was the landscape around Heathrow airport.  There were farms with sheep and horses all around.  It reminded me of the Olympic extravaganza opening ceremony.  Our hotel was nice, but the room was pretty small.  We arrived on the first days of Wimbledon.  I really wanted to go to the matches one day, but they were charging $900- 1500 pounds per ticket.  (did you know that the British didn't like Andy Murray for many years?  I had no idea until our cab driver told us the back story)

Our hotel was right across from Hyde Park.  We walked to visit Kensington Palace and learned all about Queen Victoria. The history of London was all around.  We were there in the middle of the work week and we rode the "tube".  It was clean and safe.  We saw the changing of the guard at Buckingham palace, Westminster Abbey, Parliament and we took a Thames river cruise and saw the Tower of London and the Tower bridge.

We had a lovely time.  You have to be so impressed with all the architecture and the lovely sound of British voices.  The sites are all really well-maintained. You  have to think that there is nothing close to this in America. That is true, but when  you really think about it you realize that British culture has at least a milena jump on ours.  Also- in order to have elaborate buildings, bridges and castles you have to have lived in a time where there was a small aristocracy and a large number of poor people that had no choice but to work for practically nothing.  Times have changed and we can admire the beautiful remains of a feudal society while appreciating our freedoms in America.

I agree with Wendy Williams- it is time for Teresa to leave reality TV!

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I know that I said RIP to the Jersey girls after season IV, but the kinder, gentler Teresa sucked me in again.  I really love Teresa and her family.  I wish the best for them, but I think I agree with Wendy Williams-it is time to take the kids off TV. 

We all loved watching G to the A walking down the runway when she was seven.  Milania is relatively entertaining although a bit bratty.  No one ever hears from poor Gabriella. She must be camera shy and thank goodness her shyness is accepted.  We all love the interaction with Teresa and her kids.  They are getting older and I think the teenage years are difficult enough, without being filmed constantly.  Look at Jaqueline's daughter, Ashley, that must be tough to look back on for her.

It is pretty obvious that Gia watches the show.  I just cringe at the idea of her seeing her dad calling her mom a c--t. I worry about the girls, because they have always be spoiled yet hilarious.  Spoiled children aren't funny as teenagers.  I feel pretty confident in this matter, being a teacher.  There is nothing worse than teenagers that have made to feel privileged as children. 

Teresa- I implore you to consider this.  I think Dina made the wise choice.  We all love to watch you and your family, but maybe it is time to leave, while the girls are young.

"Vice" took Dennis Rodman to Korea

OK- when the news hit the media about Dennis Rodman's visit to Korea, there was an uproar about this kook meets kook leader meeting.  Now it all makes sense.  The show "Vice"  arranged the meeting because Kim Jung Un loves the Chicago Bulls and all things basketball.  They were able to get inside Korea and document the country as much as anyone recently from the USA has had a chance to do.  If you haven't seen the last episode of HBO's Vice I highly suggest you watch.  The point wasn't that Dennis Rodman acting as a traitor to democracy, but he was used as an instrument to gain entry to a regime that is notoriously closed to the world.  I came away with a whole different opinion about the meeting and a greater understanding that there are still places in the world where totalitarian dictator's are choking the rights of their citizens.  It really was eye-opening!

NSA Phone tapping- is this really a new problem?

I was watching the View yesterday and Elizabeth was on a rant about her civil liberties being violated by the Obama administration and she hit a nerve.  First of all-  I believe the whole checking telephone records and emails started after 911 with a little something passed by Congress called the Patriot act. 

I have never been a fan of the Patriot act.  That law did remove our civil liberties.  Elizabeth that law was passed and acted upon first during your man Bush's administration.  Why was everything fine then, but when the Obama administration carries on the same exact policy- in order to "check on terrorist activity"- all of a sudden now you are worried about your civil liberties.

I have never been a fan of the Patriot Act.  In fact I worried because I had to look up the spelling of the chemical called ricin for my last blog and I didn't leave up the web page I viewed too long so as not to be identified as a possible "terrorist". 

I know that Elizabeth believes that she is the greatest Patriot on the view.  Elizabeth- this country was founded on freedom and I really believe that our forefathers would be very unhappy with the Patriot Act.  I think that President Obama has extended way too many of the bad Bush policies such as this in order to maintain the status quo.  But seriously- when you vacillate 360 degrees between the Bush and the Obama administration on the same point, the only difference left is the party behind the president and his race.

Misunderstood- "GOT"

I am one of the people that are on the fringe of the Game of Thrones phenomenon. I love to watch it, but I have very little idea how everyone is related and connected to each other.  One of my students watches it and has read all the books and he told me that last night's episode would be when "all Hell breaks loose" and he was right. I was completely stunned at what happened. The Red Wedding was quite a spectacle!  It goes to show that no one is off limits for assassination.

Again- I haven't read the books and I am clueless, but my hope is that the girls become the leaders.  I hope that the Terrell girl kills Joffrey- her new husband.  Then she will become THE Queen instead of a queen.  I hope Deanerys  joins forces with the Stark children and wipes out the white walkers with vision, mind control and Dragon power.

Gatsby is Great!

I just wanted to take a minute to endorse  "The Great Gatsby".  I read the book in high school (over 30 years ago), and I was afraid that I wouldn't remember any of the story.  I was mesmerized by the visual aspects of the movie and I did remember the story.  I think that Leonardo was a captivating Gatsby. I had heard all the negatives about the soundtrack not matching the era-I completely disagree.  The movie was perfect. I loved the music, costumes and all the lavish scenery.  The contrast of the wealth in Long Island to the poor, coal laden slums on the outskirts of new York city is just perfect.  Go see this movie!

Wake up folks- Climate change is for real

 

 

You may not remember this TV miniseries, but I do.  I started teaching in the 80's and I heard Al Gore talk about global warming.  I have been discussing this in my science classes since the early 1980's.  After I had my daughter in 1990, my grandmother was visiting during the summer and we watched this mini series.  She was disgusted by all the doom and gloom and was adamant that I stop watching all that crap.  The truth is that even though this series presented an America that may be 50-100 years away- a lot of what they were depicting has already happened.

 

I just watched a segment of the documentary show called Vice (HBO).  They were interviewing people from Venice, Italy and the former President of the Maldives (Islands) in the Indian ocean.  And news flash- they are all flooded and sinking. A friend of mine went to Italy last year and she was horrified by the emptiness in Venice.  Now some folks might say- that is what you get for building a city in an area below sea level, but just think about all the people on this planet that live near the coast. All of this people- perhaps one billion will soon be affected by the rising oceans.

 

I wish that we had taken a proactive approach when global climate change was first introduced to the masses.  We unfortunately are still fighting the doubters.  We have wasted a lot of time and most importantly burned way too much fossil fuel.  We have missed the opportunity to teach up and coming nations such as China how to switch to cleaner fuels.  China has now surpassed the US in the amount of carbon emissions.  They have over four times the population of the United States on about the same amount of land.  We could have developed better and cleaner fuel technology in the 1970's during the oil embargo, but the oil started flowing soon after and the cost went down and we lost our need and passion for the environment.

 

I remember a  scene from the fire next time where there was a huge hurricane hitting the gulf coast and people were being evacuated for good. What is it going to take to wake us all up?

 

Check out this week's installment of Vice on HBO.  Watch the Day after Tomorrow some time.  Think about how you can reduce your carbon footprint. Someday we may not be able to all have our own car.  Someday there may be more than miniature golf and fun at the shore. Someday there may be difficulty obtaining fresh water.

 

Remember- "We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from out grandchildren"-  Chief Settle

 

Last week our planet hit a Carbon dioxide level of 400 ppm.  This is the highest level that carbon dioxide has been at since the inception of humanity.  Now some people may think that this is 6000 years ago, but most scientists agree that humans have been on planet earth as Homo sapiens for 100,000 years.  Think about that one!

 

 

 

I will give my sincere so long to the "Queen".  Michelle has announced that she will not run for re-election next November.  There is not one political point that she and I agree upon.  I was watching Real Time last night and Bill Mahr made a good point.  She may be leaving, but there are probably 20 people in waiting that are even more bat shit crazy than her.  This is what happened the last time in the mid-term elections, when complacency lead to the crazy tea party taking over the House.

Please don't let this happen again.  Just this week some lunatic sent ricin through the mail to Mayor Bloomberg and President Obama over gun control, some crazy gun nut shot a bus driver in Alabama- and kidnapped a child under the delusion that the government was going to take away his guns.  Shouldn't this be a wake up call? 

These bat shit crazy leaders, like our dear Michelle above, have way too much power already.  Listen idiots.  Just the fact that you were able to get a gun, get on a school bus and terrorize children and shoot the driver (who stepped in front of a child to take the bullet for them)is a perfect pitch for support of the law (that 90% of the population endorses) that calls for better background checks.

Michelle- don't worry, I have no fear that you will have a new successor that will carry on your legacy of tea baggership.  I just wish that some of the democrats in Congress could have the kahunas that you have.  Did you steal them from your husband?  One of the real problems with our country right now is not the extreme right, it is the lack of passion in the left. It is impossible to get anything done in Congress because of the fractures within the democratic party. 

Why are we obsessed with the Walking Dead?

Who would have imagined that a zombie TV show would be the highest rated basic cable show of all time?  I am truly obsessed with this show.  Generally I stay away from really scary movies and TV shows, but lately I find myself really involved in the Walking Dead.  Maybe it has something to do with it being filmed in Atlanta. But there is so much more than that.  I want Rick, Daryl and all of their clan to survive.  I think the shows writers and crew have masterfully taken our heroes through a true-ish landscape of the a zombie apocalypse.  If you look back- the clothes used to be cleaner, the humans were less automatic in their killing of the zombies.  It is interesting how the zombies are now side effects and the real terror comes from the human to human interactions.  I wish that Andrea's vision would come to fruition.  The humans should bond together to fend off the true enemy- the zombies.  Unfortunately- human nature is not to trust one another and therefore we have the Governor vs. everyone else! 

I loved the episode where Rick, Michonne and Carl went back to Rick's hometown and found Morgan in a crazed state.  I found it so sad, yet realistic.  If someone loses their child and they are all alone- wouldn't you expect them to go a little crazy?  I mean Tom Hanks had Wilson- right?  Also the key element in that episode was the hitchhiker.  It signaled a true turn in thinking -survival of fittest.

I think the appeal of The Walking Dead is that it encourages the imagination to conjure up -what would I do in this situation?  It is obviously a fictional show, yet most of the fans like to come up with ideas where the  show will go next week.  We all love Maggie and Glen.  Everyone seemed to really hate Lori. We mourned a certain brother we all loved to hate when he left the show.

Personally I can't wait until next October.  That is the secret to a really successful television show.  I was also hooked on Lost.  That was my other favorite show. I think the Dead needs to focus a little more on the character development.  I guess so many of the cast come and go before there is time for developing their characters. I hope there is a positive end for Carl- he seems to be heading for the dark side.  on the other hand- maybe there is some humanity in Michonne!

The End of an Era

Hello-
I have been gone for a while.  Sometimes when you have nothing good to say, it is best to stay quiet.

You all may be aware that the governor came in and replaced five members of the Dekalb school Board.  Our system is broken.  Our teachers need support.  Hopefully with the intervention from the state our board will start to change their ways.

I am retiring from teaching.  I really could stay in the profession longer-just not in Dekalb county.  I believe that when you breed a culture of fear, instead a system that encourages opinions, that this is very harmful to our actual customers- the students.  Dekalb County does whatever it takes to satisfy a certain clientele and that is not helping the students.  I know other professionals in other counties and their nightmare is a parent enrolling their child into their county.  The parents have trained to think they have the power to tell school officials what to do.  This is pretty much the standard in Dekalb County, but it is not the philosophy in the surrounding counties in Georgia.  If you go to school in Rockdale, Gwinnett or Cobb counties, the school decides what your class schedule should be.

Last week I had a parent of a student that had been placed in jail two months ago, ask me to have him make up his work.  Now- he was in jail for a week and he threatened the life of another teacher at my school.  He came back to school and did nothing in class(as he had done the whole year).  He had four weeks to try to make up his work missed and did not.  Now he has transferred to another school and his mother wants him to have a passing transfer grade.  So next Friday I get to stay after school and administer a test he missed in January-because he refused to take it then.  Does any of this make sense?  Don't you think that the most important lesson at school should be that if you make the wrong choices that there should be consequences for your actions?

I refuse to fight.  The reason for this is I will get no support from my administrators if I refuse to let him make up his work.  The truth is:  he was a special ed (Behavior Disorder-go figure) student in a class of 40 other students.  He never did his work on his own.  He copied all the time and he was always disruptive in class.  Did he deserve to pass last semester- no!  He made a 70 then because his special ed teacher and I did what we could to make him turn in his work.

I feel helpless as a teacher as far as discipline and attendance are concerned.  I have students that have 15-20 days tardy and i have assigned them detention and they don't show up.  I have called home and the parents are generally supportive but they really don't have any answers or suggestions. The only thing that matters is that their child passes my class.

Don't get me wrong- I love a majority of my students.  I love engaging them and challenging them to learn new material.  The problem is that when you have 15 students in a class that want a challenge, 15 more that do not care to think and 10 that are disruptive, that is a recipe for disaster.

What are the most important things that Dekalb Schools need to do?  Get tough on discipline, ignore the parents who are enabling their children and focus on attendance issues.  Support your teachers!!!!

Oh sorry- I guess I ignored the first line in my little story!  Oh well-it needed to be said!
Momma T

Time for a Change in Dekalb?

Faced with the threat of the loss of accreditation, Governor Nathan Deal has decided to de-throne six members of the Dekalb County School Board.  First of all-aren't we all proud of Mr. Deal for finally making the news after his election two years ago.  It is about time that you got involved in some big news-making event other than the take down of the toll booth on Georgia 400.

Everyone is asking me what I think about this upheaval in the school system.  The truth is that I have never really thought much about the school board.  I don't think you are ever going to have a set of nine individuals that vote on education be successful when they have no idea about what it is like inside the actual classroom.  Our accreditation problem does not stem from how the schools are doing, it is a result of the mismanagement of our money. 

It is no secret that money has been mismanaged.  Teacher salaries have bee cut by at least 10%. Classroom size has risen from 28-36.  The school year has been cut by at least 10 days. There is a set of vague standards for each class and this is actually reducing the rigor in the classroom by forcing the teachers to only teach the standards. I know that my school's renovations were included in the SPLOST finance pool of funds.  When we were finished- no new supplies were awarded to any departments.  The gym and science classes received no new equipment.  Our lap top computers are so out of date, they are laughable. I know that other high schools were given money from SPLOST for new supplies and equipment prior to the economic crash of 2007.  Where did the money go?

Why can't our students have textbooks to take home this year?  Our former superintendent( three superintendents ago or in other words 2010!) is still facing trial for embezzling money. The superintendent before Lewis left his contract early and was paid for two years he didn't actually work. Meanwhile, we plebeian teachers are struggling each and every day trying to make something out of nothing.

I am so ashamed of our county.  I am fortunate enough to remember when this county was truly "premiere Dekalb".  That by the way was in the 1980's.  Things have gone down hill ever since. Our leadership has been top- heavy for 25 years now and we are all suffering from cronyism as a result.

But seriously- is the country doing any better?  We have the Fiscal cliff and sequestration. Did you know that every government service will be cut, but the congress will not take a pay cut?  How could you vote on the most difficult cuts in history and not take a cut for yourself?  Wake up losers!

What can you do for me?

Just in case I may have had a fleeting thought of staying in the classroom for one more year, there occurred an event this week that sealed the retirement deal for good. 

We were called in to a series of SST and 504 plan meetings.  Somehow the teachers are responsible for getting our classes covered to be able to attend these meetings.  Do you think that anyone really wants to lose their planning period to babysit another class?

In one of the five meetings I had with parents last week, the mother had decided that the school wasn't doing enough for her child.  Her child has an SST plan that says she has trouble learning math.  Apparently this involves sitting down and giving her private tutoring while ignoring the other 36 students in her class.  I suggested that she come after school for tutorial and that was out of the question. Apparently the child had not given her mother any progress reports and the school's parent portal which lists all grades in every class,never works for this mother.  Now- I have never had a problem with this student.  I had no idea that there was any animosity about her grade.  She has a C in class. She isn't able to succeed on her tests.  She gets good grades on any assignment that involves  group work.

What has education come to?  Shouldn't a parent be embarrassed by the fact that they haven't any idea what their child's grade is?  Shouldn't the parent be embarrassed that the daughter lied about when progress reports were given?    Should the parent and student bear any responsibility for the process of learning? 

Well thank you Mrs. #######.  You are able to reaffirm my decision to retire.  I have toyed with the idea of staying one more year.  There is no chance in Hell that I will be teaching next year! 

Have you seen the Eagles documentary?

What a nice way to spend a rainy Saturday.  I remember every word to every song that they played.  I had no idea that they were close with Jackson Browne.  I have always loved Jackson Browne.  I saw both of them in concert when I was young and I saw the Hell Freezes over tour ( for a whopping ticket price of $140).  I think that I'd rather hear the music than to listen to their stories.  I think they are all pretty full of themselves, but I have always loved all of their music.  The documentary is on Showtime and if you were around in the 70's, you will love the music and the memories!

Take a step back and allow history to teach you something!

 

 

 

We have really made a concerted effort to see all the movies that have been nominated for academy awards for 2012.  This was a really terrific year for film.  We just saw the Lincoln movie last night.  I have to say that Daniel- Day Lewis really deserves the award for best actor.  He was Lincoln.  I liked the way the film showed the Lincoln and all the people around him-flaws and all.  I believe Bradley Cooper, Denzel Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio and Ben Affleck were all extremely great in their respective lead-acting roles.  I haven't seen The Master, Les Miz,or  the movie about the tsunami with Naomi Watts. We actually tried to see Les Miz last night , but it was sold out and there were no parking places.  I guess everyone has Oscar fever.

I wish that we could lock every member of congress in a theater and make them all watch the Lincoln
movie.  Sometimes you just need to visualize the differences in our standard of living and our past struggle with prejudice in order to appreciate what we are blessed with currently. But can you honestly believe that any amendment could ever be passed in our Congress today?  They can't even pass laws that involve a simple majority vote.  They have trouble passing laws that are no- brainers like flood relief for Sandy victims or monetary reliefs for our war veterans.  Do you think they could ever pass campaign spending reforms, gun control or any common sense amendments?  Can you believe the party that passed the 13th amendment and ended slavery is now the party that it is today?

 It is nice to visualize how far we have come by watching this movie - but remember there is a long way to go.  My friend told me that last week one of her high school friends just passed away and he was in hospice for weeks with very few visitors.  She went to the funeral and it was well-attended by his high school and college classmates.  He died alone because he had HIV and was gay.  He couldn't bring himself to allow his hometown friends and family know this fact.  Isn't it sad that in this day we can't be honest about our lifestyle?  Are we a truly free and democratic society when some people aren't allowed to have a legal marriage?

You would think that the people that suffered the most from prejudice would be the proponents of tolerance for all, but that is simply not the case.  Sometimes it seems that they are actually some of the worst offenders. 

Do me a favor and go see Lincoln.  It is a great movie and I know you will know what the ending will be - but you may be surprised about how much you can learn that you have forgotten!

I have had it with the idiots at the NRA.  Their ad that claims the president doesn't care about protecting our children, while his daughters are protected at their school is completely offensive.  They Suck! 

I am so proud of President Obama for finally taking a stand on gun control.  It is one of those organizations that are very difficult to make a stand against because the idiots that are on the fringe will probably try some crazy action.  Also the lobby is so strong that most congressmen wouldn't ever have the balls to stand up to them or they would not get re-elected.

Thank you Mr. President for having the guts to at least START a conversation about gun control.  I am worried about you and your family because these NRA crazies are not even able to start a conversation that is coherent, let alone intelligent.

Is there a difference between a militia from the early 1800's and today? Oh duh- muskets were not very "rapid" fire.  ( by the way the 2nd amendment calls for the right to arm a militia- not teens or twenty-somethings that have nothing better to do then shoot defenseless children in their kindergarten class.)  Lets get real here- way too many innocent people have been killed in mass shootings.  Something has to be done to make weapons less accessible and the dip shits at the NRA don't want to even admit that we need better background checks or less access to assault weapons. 





 

silver linings-go see it!

I was so happy to hear that this movie received 8 nominations for the Oscars.  If you haven't seen it- I highly recommend that you do. We saw it after a bad week and it really helped us to heal.  It seems as though it would be a sad, tragic story.  Bradley Cooper has just been released from a mental hospital and he has been cast out of almost everything in his life.  The actors are all great.  They are completely believable as Philly style folks.  Jennifer Lawrence has also faced a life tragedy and is also a little nutty.  The interaction between them is very raw.  Robert De Niro plays Bradley's Eagles fanatic father.  I mean I think he reminds me of quite a few Philly natives.  Even Julia Stiles and the actor who plays her husband are totally believable in their perspectives roles.

I was sorry that Ben Affleck didn't receive any personal nominations, but his movie Argo was a great movie.  We knew the outcome because it was a true story and it was still very intense.  Alan Arkin and John Goodman made that movie.  John Goodman also injected a left into the Flight movie.  I think Denzel was perfect in his self-destructive role.  I was also happy to hear that Quvenzhane' Wallis was nominated fro Beasts of the Southern Wild.  She was spectacular in that role and I loved the movie. 

This was a great year for movies.  There were so many interesting stories out there.  I loved Life of Pi,Perks of a Wallflower and Robot and Frank.  Many of the movies didn't have a completely happy ending, but there was always a silver lining!

Our Little Angel

We lost our little baby- Hunter two weeks ago.  He was truly my baby and our family will miss him.  He had the best personality and he always made me smile.  When he was puppy he was given the nickname "El Diablo Blanco".  He was a terrier, so he did bark and attack the door when someone was outside, but he was the sweetest dog and we all loved him like our son. 

Hunter had cancer.  We thought that he had an injury to his back and it turned out to be a tumor.  He was in a great deal of pain and he lost the use of his back legs.  Fortunately the downhill slide came quickly and only lasted one week.  He went in for back surgery and never woke up.

Our family was devastated.  It was the week before Christmas so while getting a dog as a present might have been a possible idea, there wasn't any time to search.  Enter my buddy Heather at work.  Her sister-in-law had just discovered a dog that had been living in a drain pipe and they couldn't keep her.  She was a mess.  she smelled like a sewer and her fur was all matted.  She basically looked like Chibcha from Star Wars.  She was afraid to use the bathroom outside.  She was afraid to use the leash.  She was very afraid of men. 

So here is our little Christmas miracle.  She is the most loving little girl.  Her name is Lulu.  She has really become a part of our family quickly. She has the cutest little face.  She hardly ever barks.  She is coming along fantastically with potty training and she also goes into her crate when we leave the house. We are so fortunate that we had Heather looking out for us.  Lulu is the best present we have ever received and we our definitely blessed!