See? I'm not stupid

This presidential election has facinated me beyond all others. I am normally a one-issue voter. I am decidedly pro-life and I vote that way. That usually makes elections easy, as usually one candidate shares my opinion and the other doesn't. And that is true this time around, too, but now I like the other candidate better, on a personal level. So I am faced with the situation of voting for a candidate "I'm not feelin'," in order to support an issue I think is way more important than wars or economies or any of the rest.

But along this road, I have also felt an attitude from some that I would be "stupid" to vote for this person. I read political stories in the newspapers and the reader comments say as much. "How could anyone be so stupid to vote that way?" I'm not stupid. I have a very good reason for voting that way. And I can feel myself getting defensive. Why isn't my reason for voting a certain way as valid as yours is for voting another way? Why can't you see I've thought about it and made a rational choice? These are the things I think.

And now there's this. It's an essay by Jonathan Haidt called WHAT MAKES PEOPLE VOTE REPUBLICAN? He's a psychologist and I was facinated by his theories. And I was grateful for his conclusion. I'm not stupid. I haven't been duped, I'm not delusional (as one New York Times reader said in a post). So I would encourage everyone to read it.

And, you may as well read this Judith Warner blog where I discoverd the essay in the first place.

Awesome Wednesday

Yesterday I was an extra on an HBO shoot. "Untitled HBO pilot." It was a great day sitting outside and drinking fake wine. I wish it paid a little more so I could do it every day.

Today is 9/11 and like everyone else I am remembering seven years ago. I lived in NYC then and I remember trying to get in contact with a few friends that day. I found them all, thankfully.

I'd also like to say that I'm sure Sen. Obama talked about his economic policies and his education policies in that speech, but all the media chose to show us was the "pig" quote. Shame on them.

Ranting and raving

Hi all,

I am sitting in Panera, which is a great place to sit. I ordered a Mediterranean veggie sandwich, yum, and I was trying out my SecurID from work to see if I could work offsite. I am going to see my sister in October, and I want to be able to bill part of the time I'm there.

But I'm here in Panera because the Internet isn't in my budget to have at home. The people I work with have been saying I'm "this close" to a raise for just about six months now. It's just really getting frustrating waiting. It's all part of what I don't like about my job, but I am really trying to remember to be grateful and realize I have a lot, really. God has provided for all my needs, many of them through the job I go to everyday. I just wish I could go to another one. I look for other jobs, but nothing yet. I know in my heart God has a good plan for me and he is working it out right now. But this week it was really hard to keep those thoughts in my head and not how much my job sucks. I'm trying though.

Wacky Weekend

It was actually a great holiday weekend. Wonderful weather, so you know I wasn't in the Gulf states. God is good and answered prayers for a "smaller" hurricane. But before that was the Sarah Palin announcement on Friday. Of course there's all kinds of internet chatter about her, as well as traditional media. As usual, I gravitate to the New York Times. There's this about the debate on motherhood. I'm so glad the good Lord delivered me from that whole mess. Then there's this from David Brooks, and this from Maureen Dowd. In fact, four of the NYT's top ten most emailed stories about about Palin. It will be interesting to see how this unfolds.

I cleaned out my garage this weekend, helped mom clean part of hers, changed the oil in my car (yes, I do it myself) and went to see Gram yesterday for a picnic.

Left to right, Mom, Gram, me, Aunt Gwyn and Uncle Larry. We had BLT's and wonderful salad and homemade ice cream. It was a fabulous meal.

This is this week's snack, Mocha Fudge Bread Pudding. Pretty delicious.

I Have a Dream

Yesterday was the 45th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. It's one of my favorite speeches and you never get to see the whole thing. Here it is, though, from YouTube.

Lots of ambiguity

I almost didn't get a picture of this week's snack. I need to remember to take them at home before I bring it to work.

It's a Peppermint Ice Cream Cake. Pretty yummy. I think next week is going to be mocha bread pudding. Stay tuned.

I thought I was the worst offender in the less-than-flattering-opinions-about-Hilary category, but here's Maureen Dowd again giving me a run for my money.

My friend John Ribbing has a great program going providing a flag football league for kids in a poor neighborhood of Detroit. If you love football, or kids, or both, check out the City Mission football site. It's a great way to spend a Saturday morning.

I'm still working on the Italy plans. Check out this apartment in Florence.

Italy or Bust!

I am planning to go to Italy next year, fall 2009. If anyone has any tips, I'd love to hear them. Yesterday I met with my friend Jan who was there last year. She has a great eye and took some phenominal pictures. I can't wait to go see all that myself.

One of the reasons Jan went was to see the Murano glass in Venice. She's very into glass and has a good collection. After the Italy pictures her albums had pictures of amazing glass here in the US. The hotbed here is in Washington, like this, the Chiluly Bridge of Glass in Tacoma. Who knew it even existed? The whole conversation was so facinating, time just flew by. I got into the car to go home and was astonished five hours had gone by. Thanks for the great afternoon Jan!