Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Why? I suppose because I felt I had better write something... I am getting so out of date and one should keep up. Hard when I have so little to say... although I did spend two hours talking to my younger sister on... must have been Tuesday night, as LOST was playing in the background. I might have cut her off, but I knew I could watch it on my computer. Still haven't seen the program that followed (V) but I suppose I will. Strange to have a TV again... I spent a lovely long time not having TV... I got so much done.
I fear I am going through one of my periods of depression again... perhaps because I am not talking to Whitney every other day or so... perhaps just late reaction to the disappearance of Kirk. Add a Who to that Why. I'm sorry they managed to kill off the LOST people and program... I rather liked it... and I despise the horrible 'reality' shows that will replace it and most of the other shows. TV in the summer is not worth watching, although I shall probably continue to watch the news programs, including the BBC... and a couple of other programs on PBS.......
Also seem to have hit the wall in my writing life... my poems, when I can urge them out, do not please me at all. Although Nancy liked the one I did manage for Monday... it was sort of a silly rhyming thing... not at all her type of poem. I must get busy, as we have a reading to do in June and I shall have to have some sort of 'topical' thing... probably about the great oil spill in the Gulf or anything else I can find of a topical nature... another in the nursery rhyme series... or maybe I can find some other style of poem to play with.........
I seem to live in regret... I regret that I have not had a hair cut in -- my god, it must be years... I regret that I have not cleaned out the cupboards and thrown many things away... I regret that I have not learned how to get things onto eBay and gotten rid of them... I guess it is time to rid myself of a lot of things... including all that are causing my depression... I'd better get with it!!
I fear I am going through one of my periods of depression again... perhaps because I am not talking to Whitney every other day or so... perhaps just late reaction to the disappearance of Kirk. Add a Who to that Why. I'm sorry they managed to kill off the LOST people and program... I rather liked it... and I despise the horrible 'reality' shows that will replace it and most of the other shows. TV in the summer is not worth watching, although I shall probably continue to watch the news programs, including the BBC... and a couple of other programs on PBS.......
Also seem to have hit the wall in my writing life... my poems, when I can urge them out, do not please me at all. Although Nancy liked the one I did manage for Monday... it was sort of a silly rhyming thing... not at all her type of poem. I must get busy, as we have a reading to do in June and I shall have to have some sort of 'topical' thing... probably about the great oil spill in the Gulf or anything else I can find of a topical nature... another in the nursery rhyme series... or maybe I can find some other style of poem to play with.........
I seem to live in regret... I regret that I have not had a hair cut in -- my god, it must be years... I regret that I have not cleaned out the cupboards and thrown many things away... I regret that I have not learned how to get things onto eBay and gotten rid of them... I guess it is time to rid myself of a lot of things... including all that are causing my depression... I'd better get with it!!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Finally....something...
I guess we should feel joyous about the fact that everyone now can have health care. Ah, but the insurance companies are still there (I always imagine them as Scrooge, rubbing his hands together, gleefully, of course), and still collecting plenty for little. Why didn't the Democrats insist on the single payer option. This is not my fight anymore I suppose. I have Medicare... and I am one of the lucky, as I am old. Now isn't that a weird thing. The wealthy republicans are now angry... not just the trailer trash ones. Let's hope that some of this is good and will help the poor... oh, I hope...
Silliness of the evening... I find that at night my lovely, soft, unlined hands suddenly show all sorts of blue veins under the lamplight... and the left hand has a perfect heart shape of veins... the only mark that shows on that hand, while the other, or right hand has an ugly criss-cross of blue veins. Ah, Peggy... in the evening, under artificial light, always extend your lovely left hand to strangers and friends... well, I said it was silliness! I love the little heart, surrounded by small marks inflicted by Ms.Sylvia Katt, when I was stupid enough to play with her.
And as I mention her Ms. Sylvia leaps ono my lap, carefully turns around so that she can settle in her favorite way, head to my left, the only way she will lie on my lap. A creature of habit this one.
My... 10 million girls were aborted in India. If the first born was a girl, off the mother went to check out the gender of the second. If a girl... gone. Oh, I'm listening to the BBC, and they are full of information... tonight one 'the dead.' According to them, half the world's deaths do not get counted. So all these death statistics are all made up? Including the dreadful ones reported by the anti-abortion nuts? Perhaps. Oh, dear, now we are back to the poor 'good' priests, one of whom said they are in danger if they wear clerical collars because of the reports on 'bad' ones. There is no good news tonight.
However... as I look up to my right, I see a lovely big bunch of daffodills... brilliant ruffled yellow blossoms... Spring is here. We have had the strangest weather... one day of sniveling rain, one of bright sun... and back to the dull day, followed by more warm sunshine, filling my tall window with warm, wonderful sunlight... and a little finch who has a lot of nerve. He comes, sits on a long green shoot now covered with green seed pods he is not interested in. Ah, but he seems to be interested in getting my attention, as he sits there and taps on the glass, over and over. The first time he did this, some days ago, perhaps last week, I ran in from the kitchen to see who was tapping so loud on my window. It sounded like perhaps a person tapping with a key or some metal thing. But no, there was a tiny bird, banging on the window. He left, then came back and tapped some more. Sylvia didn't see him until about his third visit, when she stalked quietly across the room, jumped lightly onto the table by the window, making not a sound, and leaped. I swear he laughed and flew away, only to come back once she had settled down to sleep on her fake fur bed. He woke her up, laughed again and flew away. She is most unhappy about this brave little bird. Everyone tells me to let him in, but I am not interested in having my complete room torn apart by a flying cat.
I can smell the daffodills, and if the day tomorrow there is light rain... I shall go out in the rain and enjoy the Spring... my favorite season.
Silliness of the evening... I find that at night my lovely, soft, unlined hands suddenly show all sorts of blue veins under the lamplight... and the left hand has a perfect heart shape of veins... the only mark that shows on that hand, while the other, or right hand has an ugly criss-cross of blue veins. Ah, Peggy... in the evening, under artificial light, always extend your lovely left hand to strangers and friends... well, I said it was silliness! I love the little heart, surrounded by small marks inflicted by Ms.Sylvia Katt, when I was stupid enough to play with her.
And as I mention her Ms. Sylvia leaps ono my lap, carefully turns around so that she can settle in her favorite way, head to my left, the only way she will lie on my lap. A creature of habit this one.
My... 10 million girls were aborted in India. If the first born was a girl, off the mother went to check out the gender of the second. If a girl... gone. Oh, I'm listening to the BBC, and they are full of information... tonight one 'the dead.' According to them, half the world's deaths do not get counted. So all these death statistics are all made up? Including the dreadful ones reported by the anti-abortion nuts? Perhaps. Oh, dear, now we are back to the poor 'good' priests, one of whom said they are in danger if they wear clerical collars because of the reports on 'bad' ones. There is no good news tonight.
However... as I look up to my right, I see a lovely big bunch of daffodills... brilliant ruffled yellow blossoms... Spring is here. We have had the strangest weather... one day of sniveling rain, one of bright sun... and back to the dull day, followed by more warm sunshine, filling my tall window with warm, wonderful sunlight... and a little finch who has a lot of nerve. He comes, sits on a long green shoot now covered with green seed pods he is not interested in. Ah, but he seems to be interested in getting my attention, as he sits there and taps on the glass, over and over. The first time he did this, some days ago, perhaps last week, I ran in from the kitchen to see who was tapping so loud on my window. It sounded like perhaps a person tapping with a key or some metal thing. But no, there was a tiny bird, banging on the window. He left, then came back and tapped some more. Sylvia didn't see him until about his third visit, when she stalked quietly across the room, jumped lightly onto the table by the window, making not a sound, and leaped. I swear he laughed and flew away, only to come back once she had settled down to sleep on her fake fur bed. He woke her up, laughed again and flew away. She is most unhappy about this brave little bird. Everyone tells me to let him in, but I am not interested in having my complete room torn apart by a flying cat.
I can smell the daffodills, and if the day tomorrow there is light rain... I shall go out in the rain and enjoy the Spring... my favorite season.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
A Hope for More Readers...
IF WE DO NOT PASS HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM:
Up to 17 million more people will be uninsured by 2019 than today. 1
The average family's health care costs will nearly double by 2020, from $13,000 to $24,000
— meaning they'll be paying a quarter of their income toward health care costs. 2
Insurers can continue the massive and arbitrary premium rate increases we've heard about
recently — such as Anthem Blue Cross raising rates for customers in California by nearly
40%, and rates in Illinois going up by as much as 60%.
As many as 275,000 people could die prematurely over the next 10 years because they
don't have health insurance. 3
Health care costs will take up a staggering amount of our national budget. In 1960, it was 5
percent of gross domestic product (GDP), last year it was 17 percent. Costs will reach 21
percent of our economy by 2020 if we fail to act. 4
Rapidly rising costs will make it harder for employers — particularly small businesses — to
provide quality health insurance to employees, leading many to drop coverage or shift to
plans that cover less. 5
Even those who have insurance today will be less secure, and more likely to lose coverage if
they switch jobs or lose their job due to rising costs on the individual market or being
denied coverage due to a pre-existing condition. 6
1. http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411965_failure_to_enact.pdf
2. Commonwealth Fund, via NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html
3. Families USA, via NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html
4. http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx
5. http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx
6. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/opinion/07sun1.html?pagewanted=all
Up to 17 million more people will be uninsured by 2019 than today. 1
The average family's health care costs will nearly double by 2020, from $13,000 to $24,000
— meaning they'll be paying a quarter of their income toward health care costs. 2
Insurers can continue the massive and arbitrary premium rate increases we've heard about
recently — such as Anthem Blue Cross raising rates for customers in California by nearly
40%, and rates in Illinois going up by as much as 60%.
As many as 275,000 people could die prematurely over the next 10 years because they
don't have health insurance. 3
Health care costs will take up a staggering amount of our national budget. In 1960, it was 5
percent of gross domestic product (GDP), last year it was 17 percent. Costs will reach 21
percent of our economy by 2020 if we fail to act. 4
Rapidly rising costs will make it harder for employers — particularly small businesses — to
provide quality health insurance to employees, leading many to drop coverage or shift to
plans that cover less. 5
Even those who have insurance today will be less secure, and more likely to lose coverage if
they switch jobs or lose their job due to rising costs on the individual market or being
denied coverage due to a pre-existing condition. 6
1. http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411965_failure_to_enact.pdf
2. Commonwealth Fund, via NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html
3. Families USA, via NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/weekinreview/28abelson.html
4. http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx
5. http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Content/Blog/The-Costs-of-Failure.aspx
6. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/opinion/07sun1.html?pagewanted=all
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
WOMEN'S DAY POEM
I forget to post this yesterday, but I read it to my poetry group, who enjoyed it, after advising on cuts, which I made. My mother was a Suffragette, marching in Chicago on this same day. Jessie taught me a lot, but obviously not how to pick a husband...
...“peace and stability "can only be achieved with the
participation of women as equal partners with men."
-- The Organization for Security and Cooperation
I laugh, because I had two husbands
Who had no idea how to clean or cook
Who could not change a diaper or feed a child
That was all Women’s work and mine,
Even though I worked all day at a Man’s job
With long hours, as I had to be better
Than the Men if I wanted to keep working.
Long hours, hard work and collapse on Sunday,
Only to have a MAN stand over me and say:
“Where’s lunch, I’m hungry.”
Bless the children, oh great god
(Whom so many in our country believe in)
Convince the poor Women who shrink back
And say “Yes, dear” and keep having children
To only replace themselves, one child each,
And teach their boys to do the dishes
And their employers that they are worth
An even dollar to match each Man’s wage,
Not the seventy-five cents we get now.
Yes, if there is a god, let him show his might,
Help the Women to achieve ‘peace and stability.’
And you might also raise their wages.
Thank you George for your comments. You are very correct.
I do hope that some of the marching both our generations did help, Jess, we can only hope, I suppose; a few men agree with us... including our new president.
...“peace and stability "can only be achieved with the
participation of women as equal partners with men."
-- The Organization for Security and Cooperation
I laugh, because I had two husbands
Who had no idea how to clean or cook
Who could not change a diaper or feed a child
That was all Women’s work and mine,
Even though I worked all day at a Man’s job
With long hours, as I had to be better
Than the Men if I wanted to keep working.
Long hours, hard work and collapse on Sunday,
Only to have a MAN stand over me and say:
“Where’s lunch, I’m hungry.”
Bless the children, oh great god
(Whom so many in our country believe in)
Convince the poor Women who shrink back
And say “Yes, dear” and keep having children
To only replace themselves, one child each,
And teach their boys to do the dishes
And their employers that they are worth
An even dollar to match each Man’s wage,
Not the seventy-five cents we get now.
Yes, if there is a god, let him show his might,
Help the Women to achieve ‘peace and stability.’
And you might also raise their wages.
Thank you George for your comments. You are very correct.
I do hope that some of the marching both our generations did help, Jess, we can only hope, I suppose; a few men agree with us... including our new president.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Louden Wainwright III
One of my favorite singer/songwriters singing about one of my favorite columnists in the New York Times. I miss the Sunday Times, but the delivery guy can't find me, so I can't receive it...sad. But I can now listen to Loudy any time I want to, and I don't have to get out the records, tapes or CDs... he's right here. Wish I had a video of him playing his guitar more... he's very good! Oh... and this is from The New Yorker... I miss then too.
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