My fellow citizens

I can laugh at Trump, a little bit, but it's his followers that really make me afraid for my love of my country.
Someone very close to me said she will never fly the flag at her home because she isn't proud of so many things our country represents. I've argued with her, and tried to encourage her that we still should have pride in our country.
However, this session of politics is really rocking, my what I thought were, strong held beliefs. Yes, I knew that not everyone agreed with me on my "liberal" issues. When I had rainbow stickers on my car, one of my friends didn't want to ride with me because she was afraid others would think we were gay. I thought so what...she didn't think that. Well, we were out looking for dates, so there was more to that but, I digress. Anyway, I've tried to understand how others feel, but for the most part, I've lived in good ol' Washington, and now Birch Bay, where we don't have huge race issues. Or, so I thought.
I grew up with white washed text books. The slaves had been freed. The native people were given reservations and could have casinos, what happened in Germany would never happen here, when Japanese Americans were taken from their homes, well that was only temporary and no one was killed.
Even though I've learned a lot, and now know it wasn't how it was in those books. I'm still learning. I just watched Selma last weekend and have a clearer understanding of the fight that took place for the black citizens right to vote.
My evolution on gay rights, and woman's rights would be several more paragraphs.
Of course, I feel that I am getting more in touch with what is right, and what is good. And I feel I have taught my children what is right, what is good, and how to decide for themselves. And I naively thought we, all Americans, were on this journey together.
Yes, I'm a WSU Cougar, but I have come to realize that UW Huskies are good people too.
Seeing the video of rooms of people cheering on Drumpf's words, and seeing how he has grabbed the nomination. Even keeping in mind that none of the other republican candidates are anything special, I am shocked, afraid, stunned, a little bit freaking out.
No, I'm not moving to Canada.
My hope this morning, is that this craziness, will have some silver lining, like the crash of 2008 did for me and others, that we have a lot of work to do. It's a teaching moment. It's a challenge point. It's a wake up call. What kind of American do we want to live in?
Make love not war. Love one another. Visualize Peace. It takes a village.
I brought my flag in for the winter because the winds here tend to make a mess of it. But I think I shall fly it again with a message that our country is great. It has had bad behavior, and still needs raising, but I still love it.

Seasonal Employment

I'm in my second year now of being unemployed. No scratch that, year two of not having a full-time permanent position with one establishment. I might actually be getting used to it.

What I think is really wrong is that I moved to where I could see the bay and now I work intermittently during the school year when it's cold, grey, rainy, For the Ferndale School District and the Blaine School District, but I work full time during the summers when especially this summer, we are having beautiful blue sky days. Last summer I was a Computer Access Specialist for Whatcom WorkSource office, and this year Tech Support at Premier School Specialty.

Team building poster for summer tech team.

 

 

 

 

I've learned a lot in all my different positions, and I am so glad for the people I have met during my two summer jobs.  I really like people. I miss having a work family like I did at Maywood and Newcastle.

One of the biggest reasons I must have a full time permanent position is because the way our health care system currently works health care is only affordable when your employer supplements it. For the last two years I have purchased LifeWise  on my own at $355 a month. This covers 4 office visits and some percentage of hospital care if I need it. Of course, I haven't had to use it much, because I'm paying for it. I haven't seen the dentist in two years, Dr. Odegard would not be happy.

I'm hearing though that perhaps this Obamacare AKA Affordable Care Act  may make purchasing your own insurance more affordable. If that is the case, perhaps I could apply for and work at 4 hour school employee schedule and get this company of mine, Convivial Creations, off the ground, or out of my head and into real life.

Do you know Kony? Really?

I tweaked this a bit 'cuz the way I found it is said,
"are you coming to bed?" Only my cat asks me that
these days, so I changed it.

When there is a world or community issue brought to my attention and I am compelled, which in my case means lead to tears or anger, I tend to jump on the band wagon. When email first became the rage among my friends and acquaintances, I had to learn to use Snopes to verify the rhetoric of some viral emails before forwarding them on. Many times the important information was false.

Then I had the challenge of deciding if I needed to write back that person, perhaps even all the receivers of the email and tell them what I learned, risking them thinking I was a real jerk. Usually I just didn't forward the email.  When I saw this stick figure comic, I could really relate.

When the video KONY 2012, promoted by the Invisible Children Organization, was posted by a close trustworthy friend of mine on facebook, I watched right away as she requested. The 30 minute video was very compelling, i.e. I teared up several times and became angry as well. I immediately re-posted the video on facebook, tweeted it, pinned it and  “liked” everybody else’s post of it that my friends made on facebook, twitter and pinterest. 

I felt this was a something I could help make happen, that "something" being get this very bad man arrested, by using my social network voice. 

I also spent $30 to get the kit, which includes a poster, stickers, t-shirt and bracelet. That wasn't a hard choice for me because the bracelet reminded me of the 70's when I wore my metal POW bracelet and the T-shirt is red, plus, more importantly, I might be able to help the Ugandan children. I was so securely on the band wagon that even the bass drum player couldn’t beat me off with his drum stick. (Is the band wagon analogy really about bands? I'll have to research that.)

 

Then the wagon rolled over the pot hole of anti KONY 2012 and Invisible Children organization tweets, blogs, and youtube videos. I had to stop and take a look at myself. Did I forget to learn more about something before “sharing”? Ah, yes, yes I did. So I set upon doing some additional reading and viewing. 

Fast forward.

I have learned a little more. I’ve decided to stay on this wagon and toot my horn about this campaign to make Joseph Kony famous. Famous enough that he is found, arrested and tried for his war crimes and human rights failures.
 

If you haven’t watched the video yet, I think you should, yes, I did just should on you. (Is that joke getting too old yet?) I have no qualms recommending viewing this video. 

This isn't to say that it is the best choice ever invented for solving all world problems but it is a heck of a compelling video that introduced me to a very bad man and some wonderful children. 

Also from a videographer/educator point a view, I think it is a fantastic example of telling a story to get your point across. Imagine if a young German girl had been able to post her story online in 1942 or even later, perhaps many deaths would have been prevented. 

This is an extreme example, but you see, I’m trying to make a point, a persuasive argument. Most of us have heard the poem that starts, "First they came for the communists, but I wasn't a communist so I didn't speak out..” because as Wikipedia reminds me, this is a popular model for describing the dangers of apathy. Apathy is not a good thing. I consider that a fact, some may consider that an opinion.

Here's the initial KONY2012 video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4MnpzG5Sqc

At the bottom of this blog I'm including several links that I have now watched or read. I don't claim to know everything about KONY2012; I plan to continue to follow this call for action.

From what I’ve read I realize that much (30%) of the money the organization receives is for travel and movie making. I don’t have a problem with that. Most productions do have a large advertising budget. I would be bummed if I learn that Jason Russell, co-founder/filmmaker, has a large fancy house paid for with donations.

Perhaps Joseph Kony's crimes are old news to some, they were news to me and others and now we know. The Holocaust was 70 years ago, those war criminals should also still be punished, or if dead, still called out for their crimes so that they are noted in the history "books" or ... would that be history media?  People are still being made aware of the terrible things that were done during World War II and how they could have happened. And some people still have to be convinced.

How the terrible things could happen to people is an important study. There are reasons that people like Hitler and Kony gain such power. Hopefully we have also learned that if we don’t become part of the solution we are part of the problem. During WWII some men helped by making lists. Now days, some men and women make movies and post them on social networking sites.

We have many world problems, national problems, community issues and family concerns. My goal is to be aware of them, help where I can and remember to strive for more love and happiness for all people.

Thanks for reading and thinking about this.

-Connie

(If I'm going to be a blogger, I probably need a little closing tag, something like "and that is how I C-it", or "And that's my Con-viction" or "Peace, Love and Rock and Roll", or "Rock, Paper, Scissors".  I'll work on it.)

Here are some links I read and watched.

Here's a news report about it:

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/entertainment-eonline/20120309/b299807/?cid=hero_

Ok, now do you know enough?? Not sure? Here’s what I read on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Kony

What's the down side, well here is a video of a young girl that claims to be a Ugandan-American and she thinks KONY 2012 is bull$*#t:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DO73Ese25Y

Wil Wheaton, actor, is not sold on the power and good of the KONY2012 video and wants people to stop sending him the video, he blogs:

http://wilwheaton.tumblr.com/post/18920717928/thedailywhat-on-kony-2012-i-honestly-wanted-to

I found this article on a few news sites, it is By RODNEY MUHUMUZA and JASON STRAZIUSO from the Associated Press March 8, 2012 8:44AM

http://www.suntimes.com/news/world/11145268-418/anti-joseph-kony-video-campaign-draws-criticism-in-uganda.html

Here is a CBC video news report about the Kony 2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSTo5_vjcMc&feature=related

A politically aware new teacher friend suggested I should find out what  Nicholas Kristof from the New York Times says about this, because he has history of writing about these issues and Africa. So I looked him up and found he did write specifically about KONY2012.
http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/09/konys-victims-and-the-kony-2012-video/

Invisible Children's blog responded to the critical writings and videos that have been “put out there” about KONY2012:
http://www.invisiblechildren.com/critiques.html

Here’s what CNN reporter By Nick Thompson has to say:
http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/09/world/africa/kony-2012-q-and-a/index.html

CNN reporter By Moni Basu, reported:
http://www.cnn.com/2012/03/09/world/africa/uganda-viral-video/index.html

Hazen Choral Concert

Hi you awesome moms.
My friend sent me this sweet email this morning and I enjoyed it, but I’m a little past the baby stage of motherhood, so I had to add a few phrases. I hope you enjoy them. I bet some of you will relate to them.
Before I was a Mom,I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby. I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child. I didn't know that something so small

could make me feel so important and happy.



Before I was a Mom,

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every
10 minutes to make sure all was okay.I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,

before I was a Mom.

Additions By Connie:

Before I was a mom of a youngster, teenager, young adult
Before I was a mom of a teen I never looked up to a young man and asked him how he could walk to his bed onall those clothes
And speaking of clothes, before I was a mom of a teen,I never saw so many outfits on one girl in one day.

Before I was a mom of a teen, I never stayed up past eleven not because I was having fun, but I was waiting to hear about the fun someone else had had and that they came home safely.
Before I was a mom of a teen, I never repeated myself so often: “take out the garbage”, “straighten up your room”, “do the dishes”.Then heard the phrase so often “I forgot”.

Before I was a mom, I never yelled so loud at a basketball game or sat through so many cold baseball games because I wouldn’t want to miss an inning.

Before I was a mom, I never sat in a performing arts building amazedat the abilities of the young person I shared my home with and theirfriends in band, choir on in drama.

Before I was a mom, I never listened to a student senior culminating project and thought, wow, he did do a lot in high school and I can’t believehe isn’t using index cards and that he put this together in two days.

Before I was a mom, I never rode in the passenger seat of the cara little afraid for my life because a new teen driver was driving.Hum, I might have done that when I was a teen, but back then it was exciting.

Before I was a mom, I never went to so many parent teacher conferences and school open houses and heard so many plans for a new way to teach the same subjects. And I never heard somany variations on the theme, “your child is a pleasure to have in my class”.

Before I was a mom of a teen, I never met so many interesting young people with interesting ideas about the world that liked to drink so much pop. Some of them like to bang on fake drums and strum fake guitars but a few can play for real.

Before I was a mom, I never took so many pictures or video of the same people.

Before I was a mom, I never received so many hugs, or dirty looks, in the same day, that were so heartfelt.

I never loved a baby, youngster or teenager oh, so much,
Before I was a stepmom and mom.

Samme was at Southcenter during Saturday Shooting

http://www.king5.com/topstories/stories/NW_112208WAB_southcenter_mall_KS.1db6b4bff.html

Sammie and her girl friend Shera (Ethan’s sister) were at the mall going to see “Twilight” during the shooting. Luckily rather than going to the later 4:30 movie they went to the 4:05 movie so they were in their seats when they were informed they were under lock down. She called me from the theater to let me know.
They played the movie about half way through but then stopped the movie and gave them coupons so they could come back another time. Then they evacuated them. They were some of the last ones to be evacuated. She said it was really weird because the mall was empty but food was still on the food court tables. They were taken up to the roof and across to the garage.
They walked across the parking lot to Target and then Toys R Us to get picked up because the traffic was so messed up getting out of the mall parking lot.
When she called me she was so calm it isn’t until later now that I’m getting more freaked out.

Sammie Breaking a Leg

It's almost time for the next chance to see Sammie on stage. Rehearsals have gone to the 4 pm to whenever schedule, meaning she has some late evenings coming up preparing for opening night.

I was excited to see her name in the Hazen Newsletter that was mailed home. I took a screen shot of the one posted on the school web site and I see they have done a little privacy screening for the web version. That's a good idea.

Anyway, I hope you can catch the show even though Sammie's character "gives up". I'll be taping it on the 3rd during their preview show. That is the only evening we're allowed to take video and photographs.

Facebook

Tomorrow is Veterans Day, so we have a day off in the middle of the week. What will you do or did you do with this day off?