Archives for August 2008

There were lots of great moments during Obama’s nomination acceptance speech. But the line that I am still thinking about is when he referenced ‘the dignity of work.’ I’m not sure I have ever heard a politician use that term and I was happy to hear it.

I once worked as a hotel maid. It was a summer job after my sophmore year in college. I never planned to make hospitality housekeeping my career or anything (although lately it seems like I might have done just that.) It was just a job. As an adult, when I have mentioned this job to different people, it has produced some rather strong reactions. People have seemed embarrassed for me. As if I have just admitted a 3 month stint in a Bangkok bordello or something.

I do believe that we should all work hard to educate ourselves and obviously most of us don’t dream of being hotel maids when we grow up. But somebody has to do those jobs. Someone has to clean your hotel room. Someone has to clean your kid’s school. Someone has to bring your food if you eat in a restaurant.

Basically, the world is full of jobs that none of us would volunteer to do. And generally (though we are loathe to admit this) those jobs most often end up being done by those of us who squandered their potential opportunities or those people that never had an opportunity to squander. For instance, when I worked as a maid, there were several mother/daughter teams employed there. It’s like a generational curse.

I dream that my own children go to college and find jobs that challenge and inspire them. I pray that they always have the luxury of choosing a job rather than being forced to take whatever is offerred. I hope that they use their gifts and talents to help others. But above all, I am determined that they will understand the ‘dignity of work’.

McCain didn’t pick Mitt Romney…which saddens me. That would have been so fun. If nothing else, I think his choice does pretty definitively prove that he is, in fact, dumber than a sack of hammers. That may actually be his new campaign slogan, btw.

I never even heard this gal’s name until this morning. I’m sure that means nothing. It’s not as if I follow politics closely or anything.

I think the main problem is that McCain is just a little confused about some terms.

Like ‘surprise’…you see ‘surprise’ is not always a good thing. For instance, if I was pregnant, Kevin would be ‘surprised’ but that doesn’t mean he would be happy. So keeping this pitful pick secret and then ‘surprising’ us with it really doesn’t help.

Also, I think you were convinced by some Rovian goober on your staff that this choice and timing would somehow negate the positive aftermath of Obama’s nomination speech. Look John, you got a lot of news coverage today. But you’ve been teasing these reporters for so long, I’m pretty sure that would have happened even if you had picked Mr Excitement, Tim Pawlenty. Let’s be honest here. Obama handed you your ass in that speech. You know. I know it. And probably 80% of the American people know it. You could have tapped Oprah as your running mate and it wouldn’t have mattered.

Because really John, most Americans are just not as stupid as you imagine them to be. We understand that there are lots of strong conservative women that you could have picked to be your VP. Granted, most of them piss me off but that only means that your supporters would have loved them. Liddy Dole, Kaye Bailey Hutchison, Christie Whitman. Any of these names sound familiar? And if you had picked any one of them, I would have given you some credit for making a ‘bold’ choice. (The fact that women make up over 50% of the population should actually nullify the boldness of picking one as a vp candidate, but whatev.) Instead, you picked a token. Once again proving that ‘maverick’ must be french for ‘pandering ninny’. You see, the idea that any woman would appeal to a woman voter is kind of offensive. Most of us have moved beyond high school and we don’t travel or vote as a clique anymore. While we may like the idea that a woman could be Vice President or, heaven help us, President, we’d really like to have some confidence that should a woman ascend to that office, she would be able to do the job.

If that notorious phone rings at 3AM, I’m not confident Mrs Palin would even know which end to speak into.

We got married.

I really want to write a long post detailing the ceremony and all the craziness that led up to it. I really want to explain how nuts I have been with the move, job change, etc. I really want to share (most) of the details of our mini-honeymoon.

But…

Instead I have to tell you that one of the kids has head lice. Romantic, ain’t it?

Emily thinks this is very embarrassing for our family but I find it pretty hilarious. I’m sure some nasty little, neglected kid at school gave it to them…or maybe our kids gave it to them…whatever.

So, at some point, I will post all the details of our blessed union and pics (providing my fugly hairdo doesn’t look as bad in hindsight.) But right now, I’ve got to find a tiny comb and go burn some bed sheets.

Mazel Tov!!!

Ann Patchett is on her way to becoming one of my favorite novelists. This is dangerous because as soon as I start to really like a writer, the opportunity for disappointment goes up exponentially. Thankfully, her new novel Run was a completely satisfying read.

The story is about a family and the story is about politics but it does not contain the cliches and melodrama that the melding of those two subjects generally produce. My admiration for Patchett stems from her ability to take a seemingly simple premise and spin it into a powerful story. Her writing is so subtle that I read the whole thing without once rolling my eyes. (This is friggin rare, as you can imagine.)

The book is written about a man and his wife who adopt two African American brothers. The man is a former mayor of Boston who dreams of political careers for his two adopted sons as well as his older, biological child. His wife dies when the children are young and he is left to raise them alone. There is lots more but, for some reason, I can never deliver an effective plot synopsis without ruining the whole book. But,seriously, read it. You know I would never steer you wrong about books…or snack food.

In the elevator…

Woman #1 – “I cannot believe that gas has gone down to under $3.50 a gallon.”

Woman #2 – ” I know. Isn’t it a blessing?”

Look…I’m all about counting your blessings…really I am.

But this, to me, is like being happy that your husband only beats you up on the weekend.