So I have had a few hours of complete peace and quiet. My children are all elsewhere and my sweetie is at work earning us a living so I have had the house to myself.
As mothers we yearn for these times. We work hard to get them. But then when they arrive how do we spend them. Trying to decide how to spend them. Well, maybe you don't but I do. I worry about wasting my free time. I dream about ways to use it wisely and get the most bang for my quiet buck. Then reality sets in as it has today. In two hours I will go pick up one of the children so I will no longer be completely free. Of course since that child is the oldest one and she has been at a "sleep"over all night with one of her BFFs, the reality is that she will be more zombie than person until tomorrow morning, so it is sure to still be fairly quiet around here. But nevertheless I feel a little like I have squandered my time.
Yesterday after dropping Jessie off I stopped at the girls' school. I spent most of my 5 hours of free time over there helping. A good use of time really but what about doing something for me? So my sweetie and I went to dinner together, alone, last night and then came home to an empty house. So what did we do? Did our children's animal care chores and then sat with our computers in our laps until the news came on. This morning I slept in then read my book for at least an hour before getting up. There are so many things I could have been doing, even should have been doing but I did none of those things. Is this a good use of my free time? Tomorrow we are off and running again and there will be no time to scrapbook, bead, sit and stare out the window, garden, shop, or any of the multitude of other things I could do with my free time.
So was what I did a waste of my free time? I don't know. What I do know is that I felt good about helping where I did yesterday at school because the teachers have the monumental task of moving every single room around because of changes we are making in configuration and layout of the school. I did something good by giving up my free time to help for a while. And I did something good for me by staying in bed this morning, enjoying the chance to do some extra sleeping and reading. Should I have gotten up, gone for a walk, gotten the garden planted or cleaned a room, sure, but where is the fun in work when you don't have to.
Now though it is time to get with it. I have tomato plants to purchase, a garden to plant, animals to care for, dessert to make for tomorrow, a child to pick up, a car wash fundraiser to prepare for and on it goes so until next time, I say enjoy your moments when you can get them doing whatever it is you want to do because they are fleeting and we get so few of them. Make you a priority if for only a few moments before jumping back into that to-do list.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tastelessness in the news media and comedy
What is the world coming too? How did we get to the point that tastelessness and tackiness are the norm in comedy and news media?
I have been struck speechless two nights in a row over this very point.
The first is a tasteless "joke" made by David Letterman about Sara Palin's 14-yo daughter regarding an incident that happened at a Yankee baseball game. As I understand the story, the girl and her mom were at the game when Alex Rodriguez went after a fly ball and fell into the stands hitting the young girl. On Monday night David Letterman made a joke about Sara Palin's daughter getting "knocked up" during the 7th inning of the Yankee game. Here is a link to a youtube video of the joke.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5g8kE_g-YA
Now tell me, does this not sound like he is making the joke at the expense of the child who was actually at the game?
Of course, now Mr. Letterman is backpedaling after being called on his atrocious behavior, justifying it by saying the joke was about Governor Palin's older daughter, who had a baby last year. Seriously, am I to believe that makes it any better? I am disgusted. I am angry. I am this close to writing angry letters to the powers that be at CBS, the Letterman Show, etc. Please someone tell me, how is any of this funny?
The second appallingly tasteless event was on tonight's local news broadcast. Most people have heard of the sad, senseless loss of life at the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. I am saddened for the people this event effected. I feel awful for the family who lost a father/husband/son. I am feel for the people who were going about their business, trying to enjoy their vacation and had to witness this heart wrenching event. So the news media felt that the appropriate thing to do in reporting about this story was to go find the child of the guard who died and stick a camera and microphone in his face to ask him how he felt when he heard the news. Seriously??? This is what the news producers thought was appropriate? A child lost his father today. He has not even had time to assimilate that information and he has a camera stuck in his face? I don't care who gave permission for this, it never should have been sought. There is a line here and the news crew bypassed it by a mile. I started to look for a link to the video proof of this but then I stopped. I refuse to perpetuate this travesty by posting a link for more people to watch it.
Enough is enough. It is time to return some sense of human decency to news stories, late night comedy, etc. I am so sick of this kind of thing. These are only two recent incidents. So many times lately I hear something in a news story or on a comedy show and think to myself, "what a tasteless thing to do/say". If these things are okay now, where is the line not to be crossed? Is there one anymore?
I am disgusted and angry. I don't think I will be any less disgusted and angry for a long while to come.
I have been struck speechless two nights in a row over this very point.
The first is a tasteless "joke" made by David Letterman about Sara Palin's 14-yo daughter regarding an incident that happened at a Yankee baseball game. As I understand the story, the girl and her mom were at the game when Alex Rodriguez went after a fly ball and fell into the stands hitting the young girl. On Monday night David Letterman made a joke about Sara Palin's daughter getting "knocked up" during the 7th inning of the Yankee game. Here is a link to a youtube video of the joke.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5g8kE_g-YA
Now tell me, does this not sound like he is making the joke at the expense of the child who was actually at the game?
Of course, now Mr. Letterman is backpedaling after being called on his atrocious behavior, justifying it by saying the joke was about Governor Palin's older daughter, who had a baby last year. Seriously, am I to believe that makes it any better? I am disgusted. I am angry. I am this close to writing angry letters to the powers that be at CBS, the Letterman Show, etc. Please someone tell me, how is any of this funny?
The second appallingly tasteless event was on tonight's local news broadcast. Most people have heard of the sad, senseless loss of life at the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. I am saddened for the people this event effected. I feel awful for the family who lost a father/husband/son. I am feel for the people who were going about their business, trying to enjoy their vacation and had to witness this heart wrenching event. So the news media felt that the appropriate thing to do in reporting about this story was to go find the child of the guard who died and stick a camera and microphone in his face to ask him how he felt when he heard the news. Seriously??? This is what the news producers thought was appropriate? A child lost his father today. He has not even had time to assimilate that information and he has a camera stuck in his face? I don't care who gave permission for this, it never should have been sought. There is a line here and the news crew bypassed it by a mile. I started to look for a link to the video proof of this but then I stopped. I refuse to perpetuate this travesty by posting a link for more people to watch it.
Enough is enough. It is time to return some sense of human decency to news stories, late night comedy, etc. I am so sick of this kind of thing. These are only two recent incidents. So many times lately I hear something in a news story or on a comedy show and think to myself, "what a tasteless thing to do/say". If these things are okay now, where is the line not to be crossed? Is there one anymore?
I am disgusted and angry. I don't think I will be any less disgusted and angry for a long while to come.
Maturity
How do you define maturity?
I have been struggling with how to categorize maturity. My oldest DD is turning 13 and we have had a few talks lately about maturity. We have discussed that it is important to present yourself in the best light and to put your maturity on display through making good decisions, being able to converse with others intelligently and generally presenting a positive face to the public.
I have a couple of reasons for discussing this now. I need to reinforce responsibility and to me that is connected directly to showing maturity. She needs to prove that she is ready to take on responsibility. She holds an officer position within the 4-H club and she needs to be a leader. She is also a jr. leader. Just by the name you can see that the above statement is true. Furthermore, she is now one of only three eighth graders in her school. She is the only one who has been at this school since kindergarten. She has to be the leader. She must demonstrate the maturity of being part of the oldest portion of the student body. She is a good kid and she needs to model that behavior on a daily basis.
Additionally, she has chosen to take on projects that put her in contact with the public. She must present herself in the best possibly light. People around here have long memories. What she does and how she presents herself now will have impact on her for years to come.
So how do you define maturity?
I have been struggling with how to categorize maturity. My oldest DD is turning 13 and we have had a few talks lately about maturity. We have discussed that it is important to present yourself in the best light and to put your maturity on display through making good decisions, being able to converse with others intelligently and generally presenting a positive face to the public.
I have a couple of reasons for discussing this now. I need to reinforce responsibility and to me that is connected directly to showing maturity. She needs to prove that she is ready to take on responsibility. She holds an officer position within the 4-H club and she needs to be a leader. She is also a jr. leader. Just by the name you can see that the above statement is true. Furthermore, she is now one of only three eighth graders in her school. She is the only one who has been at this school since kindergarten. She has to be the leader. She must demonstrate the maturity of being part of the oldest portion of the student body. She is a good kid and she needs to model that behavior on a daily basis.
Additionally, she has chosen to take on projects that put her in contact with the public. She must present herself in the best possibly light. People around here have long memories. What she does and how she presents herself now will have impact on her for years to come.
So how do you define maturity?
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Oh no,
I have done it again.
My poor little blog has been so neglected the past month and a half. I have been so busy with school, home and life that I was not called to come here. But now summer is in full swing, the kids are done with school and I feel a need to come back to my little spot on the web.
Actually I have lots of little spots on the web, places I spend my time puttering around, talking to friends and playing games.
There is Scrapshare, where I go for all things scrapbooking. I also go there for friendship and comraderie. There I can vent about my kids, get advice on nearly any situation, get motivation for my struggles with home care and weight issues. I am also inspired daily by the fantastic artists that share their creations daily.
Then there is Dottie's Weight Loss Zone. This is my first home on the web. I have to admit that I have not been here in the last few weeks either. But I know that any time I want to go back, I will be welcomed with open arms. My friendships there a fantastic. I know that I have people there who will walk with me through the beginning, middle and end of my weight loss journey and then just hang around for the fun of it. I have been going to this web home for many years and I know that I can slip right back in.
Oh and then there is the newest obsession, Facebook. I resisted, I fought to stay away, I knew better but in the end I gave in. I am so glad I did. I have such fun learning more about my friends from Scrapshare and Dotties. I connect with my brother more over Facebook than I have for a really long time. I play games. It is my down time. I love it. I have not connected with a lot of people from my past but truthfully that is okay. I am having a great time getting to know current friends better.
So why did I feel I needed to share this today? Who knows. It was just what came to mind when I opened the blogpad today. Maybe later I will find something more substantial to write about...... or maybe not.......
My poor little blog has been so neglected the past month and a half. I have been so busy with school, home and life that I was not called to come here. But now summer is in full swing, the kids are done with school and I feel a need to come back to my little spot on the web.
Actually I have lots of little spots on the web, places I spend my time puttering around, talking to friends and playing games.
There is Scrapshare, where I go for all things scrapbooking. I also go there for friendship and comraderie. There I can vent about my kids, get advice on nearly any situation, get motivation for my struggles with home care and weight issues. I am also inspired daily by the fantastic artists that share their creations daily.
Then there is Dottie's Weight Loss Zone. This is my first home on the web. I have to admit that I have not been here in the last few weeks either. But I know that any time I want to go back, I will be welcomed with open arms. My friendships there a fantastic. I know that I have people there who will walk with me through the beginning, middle and end of my weight loss journey and then just hang around for the fun of it. I have been going to this web home for many years and I know that I can slip right back in.
Oh and then there is the newest obsession, Facebook. I resisted, I fought to stay away, I knew better but in the end I gave in. I am so glad I did. I have such fun learning more about my friends from Scrapshare and Dotties. I connect with my brother more over Facebook than I have for a really long time. I play games. It is my down time. I love it. I have not connected with a lot of people from my past but truthfully that is okay. I am having a great time getting to know current friends better.
So why did I feel I needed to share this today? Who knows. It was just what came to mind when I opened the blogpad today. Maybe later I will find something more substantial to write about...... or maybe not.......
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