Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Dirty politicians and the people who love them.

"There are always too many Democratic congressmen, too many Republican congressmen, and never enough U.S. congressmen." author unknown

I will pick a risky topic today considering no one reads this blog.

Why do people get so mad and take it so personal that someone doesn't believe what they believe. We are all brought up differently, experience different things, interpret those experiences in different ways, and for the most part, try to be good people and have a happy life. Of course, there are always exceptions. I understand why my Grandma always says to avoid the topics of politics or religion.

I have family members who will fight you anytime you open your mouth about anything political. If you are a Democrat, than automatically the assumption is that you love Obama and support full welfare and health care for all. If you are a Republican, than you the assumption is made that you are a greedy rich ass who hates animals. Guess what, in my family, I don't open my mouth often. I don't think they are wrong or right, I just don't feel like arguing what I believe. It's stupid, at the end of the argument, we will still believe what we believe (even if some of it is just a repeat of something Rush Limpball said). I still love them, they are my family. Not worth getting worked up over.

My theory is to each thier own. I had a professor in college, Professor Farrell, who made us read books on both sides of the fence. One of the most right wing books we read was by a black man who came from a poor inner city neighborhood. I think knowing the "other side" is useful, it's like getting a look into your enemy's arsenal. The thing is though, "they" aren't our enemies. They are our neighbors, our parents, our friends. For the most part, "they" are all tax payers and citizens of the USA. They have the right to an opinion no matter what that opinion is. My only request is that you don't just listen to Rush or Obama or whomever, but really think about what they say. One side is never 100% completely right and that is why we have two parties, a check and balance system. If one is doing a job that the people approve of, they get more people in office. If the opposite happens, the next election tends to be a mass cleansing.

I've heard people say they want this country to be attacked just so people will question Obama. Really? Seriously? You want innocent people to die so your side can be right? That is just repulsive that you would think that. Why would you want something so horrible?

I appreciate we live in a country where we are allowed to have our own opinions and can voice them whenever we want. I also appreciate and thank the military for protecting that freedom! And now, I will step off my soapbox and go back to mostly just listening.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

One is silver and the other gold.


In the last few years I have noticed friendships that were near and dear to my heart have fallen by the wayside and others just feel like they don't exist anymore. I am at that age where my friends and I have just so much going on, sometimes keeping in touch just sounds like another fantasy. With Facebook, IM and Twitter, I often make the mistake of just keeping up with them on social sites and not actually reaching out and giving them a call. I have many friends with young children and as silly as this sounds, I don't want to bother them. I feel like they are too busy with their kids and being a mom that my life would probably sound trivial to them. And my thoughts on this sometimes are justified when I call and never get a call back. Then I have other friends where I know that we are still close but geography just keeps us apart and if we see eachother once a year or 20 times a year, we are still all good.

I often want to reach out and ask these friends who don't call back if they are mad at me or if I have done something wrong but I don't want to sound dramatic or needy. I feel like friendships take effort no matter what else is going on. I might not have kids but I do have other obligations and priorities and have ALWAYS made an effort to remember birthdays, arrange nights out, get people together. I always tried to make it to birthdays and celebrations. But now, even though I'm 3000 miles away from most of my good friends, over the past few years, I have started only making efforts with the ones who make an effort back. It might seem selfish but I have learned that some friendships I cherish weren't cherished back (or aren't) and I just have to let them go. It's not anyone's particular fault but just two people growing apart. I won't lie, sometimes I think that sometimes it is a lack of effort that causes the growing apart but still, it is a feeling that makes me sad, not mad.

My goal is to pick up the phone a little more often and just say hi. EVEN when I don't think I have anything new to share.