politics schmolitics

I confess...I can't come up with a cute little line here.

It has surprised me over the past three years to see the political side of Boston. We are in a state known for being very Blue, but I find that much of the population is more conservative in some senses than the folks in Georgia were (well, in Atlanta...if that is "really" Georgia).

The religious side of the area is definitely very prominent. A big news item this week was changes in Mass services due to the swine flu...and the outrage many expressed at the doing away (temporarily) of communal wine. I think a bit of this may be tempered in the political sphere by a tendency of New Englanders to focus more on their immediate circles than any others. People may not approve of abortion or gay marriage, but they also may not feel compelled to care what others do in that vein. It's the same reason gay marriage passed in Iowa. It is liberal in some senses but not in others. And even gay marriage wouldn't have made it through here by popular vote at first...though now that the sky hasn't fallen, it might be upheld.

Which leads to the next thought...the area is pretty change averse, a conservatism in itself. We'd had the same two senators for a long time...we're only getting a new one because Kennedy passed away (we also like Senators with "K" sounds in their names but I'll skip that silly tangent for now). The mayor has been in office for many years and while some opponents cry out about needing change, I think most people kinda like it that way. If it ain't broke (and maybe if it is), why fix it?

Not sure where I'm going with this. Just something I think about. Maybe the lesson is to really look before you label. My part of GA was quite liberal (my neighbor was an openly gay woman in the state house, we elected a total nut to US House b/c she was the Dem)....I think a Republican has a much better shot at my MA neighborhood than my old haunts.

wherein i join the bandwagon

I confess...I am "talking" about balloon boy.

Maybe it is living with a Comm person, but what strikes me about the whole Balloon Boy fiasco is the comments it elicits about the media.

Barring proof of complicity or such, I really don't see any need to trash the news outlets over this. It was a compelling story. I listened and wanted to know more. And so did countless others. Yes, the media should be keeping us informed about "more important" news. But I see that as an "also" not an "instead of." There's no conflict between following "human interest stories" and "serious news"...both can live side by side. I want both.

On the other side, there's the reality TV angle. I've ranted before about cases in which reality TV exploits children and this seems to add to the list. Not only were the kids on a typical reality show when they couldn't truly consent, they were plot points in a (possibly) staged "reality event." It bothers me to no end that people will use their children to gain their 15 minutes. It seems like a form of abuse...obviously not the same as "traditional" child abuse, but still "mis-use." Is it the money that motivates these people? Is it the "glory" of the spotlight? Is it some unfulfilled need for attention?

whine

I confess....I am going to ramble and whine.

The pain has been bad for a few weeks now. I feel ill-equipped to face it. I just had surgery in May....I should be feeling fine.

I didn't get out of bed for my w/o today. I didn't fall back to sleep either which makes it feel like wasted time. The pain makes it hard to start but I'm usually okay for the duration of the w/o once I get going, though I get some bounce-back pain after. I just couldn't get going though.

Which bothers me more b/c I've put on a few pounds. Not a lot but enough to make my slacks tight and I really don't want to have to go shopping anytime soon. I know the problem is food, not the lack of exercise and that, if anything, I put in too many miles. I KNOW that. Really. But I feel like I can control the exercise much more than I can control the food.

The full-blast arrival of Fall doesn't help. I often say I'd enjoy Fall if I didn't know what came next. "Next" is coming too soon...the weather lady said it was 31 outside the studio (warmer in the city proper) and then said it would be our warmest day all week. I broke out the scarf and hat and gloves. I was pretty much alone in that regard and saw a few glances on the train. But I was glad I had them all. So there.

I took a pill and I'm waiting for it to work. I called the dentist to see if I need to come in since I absent-mindedly flossed the temporary crown tooth on Friday and it popped out. I put it back in like he'd said to do and it has stayed fine but it's several weeks till I go back so I thought I should call.

I'm cold, in pain, tired, and feeling like a slug for the missed gym trip. Happy Monday.

etc

I confess...I have fallen off the blogging bandwagon. I think I've just felt really tired lately and haven't had too many deep thoughts to share. So instead I will share smaller ones...

• I watched a blind woman read on the train this morning and was just amazed at how fast she read. I then felt bad for being amazed...like it was ignorant of me. Really, there's no reason why someone who has done it for a long time couldn't read as well with their fingers as I can with my eyes. But I still felt like I could never do it...
• I'm having a rough pain spell again and taking way more meds than I'd like.
• I would like Fall MUCH more if I didn't know what came after it. But I do think we may take advantage and do a leaf-peeping drive tomorrow.
• I signed up for an alumni happy hour tonight. It was billed as a welcome to the city event for young alums but I'm still surprised that I look like the oldest person by far who has RSVPed. I'm hoping that there are others who used email or the phone instead of the web portal and thus aren't on the website's list. Not that I don't like 21-24 year olds...I just have always related better to people who are older than me as opposed to younger.
• Bosses Day is next week. When I was little, I'd ask my mom why there was a Mother's Day and Father's Day but no Children's Day. She (as many do) said, "Every day is Children's Day." Isn't the same true for Bosses??
• I had a root canal a few weeks back and the first of 2 appts for a crown yesterday. I had a different doc for the RC and my regular one for the crown. It really made me appreciate the difference a nice doc can make. The RC guy didn't tell me anything and at one point just disappeared for ten minutes. My regular guy told me every step he was taking, kept checking on me, and was just really attentive. And he offered to make me a certificate saying I have a very small mouth....not sure how that would be useful but I appreciated that he acknowledged it instead of just telling me to open wider.

oversharing

I confess...this is another food-issues post.

My husband recently said he'd never heard me refer to my food issues as an addiction. This surprised me since I definitely have compared it to alcoholism when talking to people about it, especially others with similar battles. Not to diminish the struggles of an alcoholic, but in a way I think a food-related addiction is harder. I can't go cold-turkey...

We were recently at an event that had a buffet-style brunch. It was not a seated event which meant I wouldn't be noticeable (or as noticeable) for getting up and reloading again and again. And it became a bad food event for me. I thought about it a lot and at first mentally compared it to an alcoholic at a place with an open bar. Then I revised that...I HAD to eat something...so it was like taking an alcoholic to an open bar and saying "Have two drinks, then stop." No one would really expect that to work...but those of us with food battles face that type of thing at every turn.