Fidelity, honesty, integrity and common sense...not so common anymore.

We fail to recognize the simple lessons taught by one of my favorite philosophers, Wile E. Coyote the image here:  choices have a result - decisions have gravity....It has always amazed me how people can rationalize in their heads doing certain things that normally would cause them to shake their heads ~ especially if they witnessed someone else doing it!  In this Jerry-Springer-drive-thru-disposable-instant-gratification-Veruca-Salt-world of "I want it now", people seem almost at ease in making snap irrevocable decisions as if there is no that seem to have no consequence. 
My favorite pet peeve right now (I have many, as you will learn if you follow this blog...) is people holding conversations which ought to be private in the middle of the grocery store...really?  You are discussing "who your baby daddy is?" in the produce section?  It is even that much better if they are on a cell phone, because then you don't know who the other person is...potentially could be another baby daddy candidate!  Scandalous (- isn't that the name of a rapper btw?  If not it should be- ha)...!  It used to be that you could assume I was speaking of folks closer to the inner city Milwaukee area, but guess what...this was a mid-20's WHITE woman in a dress suit talking about this about two months ago...Is that what it is like to be single now - "I think I will have a cucumber today, but oh that green pepper, well...we'll have to keep it mind for tomorrow"...Yikes! (insert picture of Wiley Coyote here) !?!
A close second on my pet peeve list is Facebook posts of a personal nature and "check-ins".  Just for fun, I would love to create a fake profile and check in "Jane Doe has just checked in at the toilet".  This app has brought bragging and narcissism to a new level...seriously I could not care less where you are unless you are my kid or family or we have a meeting that you are missing or late for!  And as for private things, like someone cheating on someone, taking this to a public forum especially if you are a third party to the cheating and not directly involved like facebook is just shameful and ridiculous; it is embarrassing for all concerned and there is nothing hilarious or entertaining about it although the producers of Jerry Springer and the like would debate me on that one.  People have been hurt, killed, or committed suicide over bullying, which can't be seen as much different that this type or targeting or calling someone out.

I want to know who killed to Golden Rule?

I have drilled this into my girls to the point of eye-rolling:

"Never give up what you want most for what you want right now."

Of course, that would work with dieting too...bleh...

Healthy banter vs. adversarial ranting...and such...

As a student of law working toward my Master's in Public Administration, I often find myself on the unpopular side of the issues.   I am used to it, having been in supervisory/management positions nearly everywhere I have worked.  The disdain I sometimes fetch is not limited to strangers...even my oldest daughter tends to avoid talking to me as much because we disagree on a few things...like what is going on in Madison, Wisconsin, right now with the Unions and Gov. Scott Walker...'nuff said.
My parents and nearly everyone I knew growing up and in my religion tended to see things on the right, & that was what I had always "identified" more with, so I never really thought of myself as a feminist or as outspoken ~ until a few weeks ago...that same oldest daughter told me she "missed" that about me (to which my brain went - hunh, really?).  Then this happened:  A schoolmate also suggested I join a group for Liberal Law Students (It is a conspiracy!?!)  Which I did not do...not because I am either way when it comes to politics, but because if you claim to be either, then they accuse you of waffling later on if you vote against or for something that historically the party has been against...since I will hope to be in Public Administration in the near future (God willing), I think it best to refrain from associating with either group too completely.  When it comes to voting in elections, sometimes I would like it if I could just vote "present" ~ the way they can with many issues in Congress. 
When I make decisions, I try to take each item before me on a case by case basis, without prejudice, in fairness to all most parties concerned. This should not be mistaken for the absence of a personal opinion, however.  I just have learned that there is a time and place for that - in my case, I only express them privately to my family.  I go about my duty as I should, with the interest of the company or entity in the forefront of my mind.
I guess in my old age, now that I am an "old married lady", I don't feel the need to be as assertive in my views in general - only when it comes to things I deem to be "really" important...like our government not being controlled by big business OR unions.  I cannot and will not sit idly by while travesties plague our great country!
I wish there were a third party, called the "most best right thing for everyone" party...I guess since we can't agree on that due to the vast difference of life experiences we all have, I will just have to keep being a little outspoken...hopefully I haven't just ranted but have stirred up a healthy banter :) 
To be or not to be is the question ~ a Republicrat or Demoblican?

Two sides to every story...

Finals week...only three terms to go after this & I will have my B.S. in Legal Studies!!!
I am just finishing up Public Administration and Management and Administrative Law.  I have loved the Master's class, but the law class was pretty good as well.  As someone who has often been in management and leadership roles, it strikes me as funny the things that I have taken for granted in my life.  For example, it never occurred to me that perhaps I couldn't do something - I was raised to believe that I was just as capable and smart as the next person....it never occurred to me that I did not have the skill set to complete any undertaking.  Failure was not an option - I am my Father's daughter. That is not to say that I don't experience failures - I have certainly had my share.  What it does mean is that I have tried, in everything I have ever done (with the exception of my personal life-another story for a different day perhaps), to do my best - and I have taken pride in doing a good job, in giving my employer a good day's work for a good (not always) day's pay.  Obviously, in studying the law and the political process in the United States, I have come across some shocking things.  I have also come across some really heart-warming moments as well.  Times where we, as a people, were better than we ever thought we could be.  For every horror story we heard about Hurricane Katrina, I can point to some wonderful moments in humanity; for every injustice that victims have endured when the bad guys gets off on a technicality, I can show you a juvenile that was able to be rehabilitated and is a productive and fruitful member of society.  There are two sides to every story, and I am struck by the naivety that anyone thinks they know it all.  You can learn something from everyone you encounter - even if it is how NOT to be.  Sometimes that lesson is just as important as learning who you DO want to be.  I want to be me, but BETTER.  I pray for that every single day.

Time does not heal all wounds, rather, it turns them into something else...WHAT is entirely up to you.

"It is amazing how day by day the time crawls and all of the sudden, it has been a month, then 6, then a year...until the fond memories are all you have and the pain seems to nearly disappear - not that you miss her any less, but rather, she becomes a part of your soul and you carry her with you wherever you go."

I wrote this to my friend the other day as she discussed with some sorrow that her puppy had been gone for a month now.  Although I wrote it for her, but was thinking about the losses I have had in my life.  While sad, the most recent, my grandmother in 1999, was bittersweet.  Perhaps this is why I can be so Pollyanna about it.  She had MS and suffered so much through the last few years that death was a welcome relief to her body and soul.  Our sadness was really of a more selfish nature - we would miss her.   She was the glue that held us all together and in the years since her passing, that has become more and more evident.  She made us all want to be better and do better and was always willing to lend an ear and an encouraging word.  She had this amazing way about her; although uneducated, she was one of the smartest women I have known, for she knew just what to say and do to make us all want to succeed while she was alive.