Today reading the New York Times and shaking my head at every page turn due to the constant reminders that America's new President Barack Obama has a "grand strategy" for America's ever decreasing fiscal stability.
There have been mentions of another address to congress by the President about this fantastic stimulus plan. But I just can't help, no matter how socially unacceptable it may be picture President Obama when addressing the nation not as political icon. but as a proverbial Santa Claus, The tune, "here comes Santa Claus", inevitablely follows. The lyrics that find there way to my stimulus carol go something like this, " here comes socialism, here comes socialism, right down Pennsylvania Avenue." I was never much of a rhymer, I think poetry is the only class I failed in high school but I felt the content grasped the emotion of the situation. The humming of Christmas carols in February attracts the looks of many as I walk down the hollowed halls of higher education. And with the Obama stickers I see plastered all over the backs of laptops. I doubt this is the audience in which I should make my vocal debue. I guess I will just have to be satisfied with side glances for my intrusive humming and blogger fame.
That's it for the rock stylings of peri-peri
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
men and parking lots
I have come to the conclusion that men are like parking lots,
They are either handicapped or taken.....or they are gay which just means they are handicapped and taken.
and to quote Forest Gump,"that's all I have to say about that"
tootles
They are either handicapped or taken.....or they are gay which just means they are handicapped and taken.
and to quote Forest Gump,"that's all I have to say about that"
tootles
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Come what may and love it!
In church today one of the men that spoke in sacrament talked about a conference talk given by Elder Wirthlin.
This talk fit so well with the feelings or lack there of that I had been having over the last couple of weeks. And it also tied in nicely to a comment my friend made on the phone last night. Sister Svendsen, I guess I can call her by her first name now, Brooke told me last night on the phone; After I explained that I was still having a hard time adjusting to real life again, said "I had the same problem until one of my friends told me that I was the one complicating my life". She went on to tell me that life is simple. At the moment she told me that I was doing one of those eye rolls and thinking to myself, yeah right life is just complicated. However, that night on my knees in prayer I was impressed upon to reconsider. But of anyone that knows me I am pretty persistent when decided upon a course of action. So I wasn't fully convinced. ( I am kind of embarrassed to admit that but hey we all make mistakes, mine are just a little more frequently occurring than others) But what really convinced me was today in church. When this person was speaking about not getting caught up in adversity but understanding Gods divine purpose and moving forward. I have been so focused on not letting myself and others down, I forgot to dance in the rain. I am not referring to the music scene that includes Fred Austere. But I got that idea from my mother when I was on my mission. She wrote me a story about how a man traveled alot to this certain town. When he was in the town it always seemed to rain. but on one occasion when he had brought his son along his son asked why do the people golf in the rain, work in the rain, travel in the rain. And the man noticed that his son was right even though it was raining this was an active community and he realized if they didn't do it in the rain they wouldn't do it at all. The man in Sacrament also told the story of a professional baseball player that was only Born with one arm, but instead of giving up he pursued his dream of playing baseball. And it became a fairy tale. He danced in the rain. Our rain clouds might be different then his but that doesn't matter as long as we choose not to let the rain push us inside. We gotta Dance! Speaking of fairy tales my friend Brooke also informs me that life is a fairy tale and we are the authors. It's all what you make it to be. It's nice to have friends who believe in fairies. and Who encourage you to dream big.
My new goals
1.DREAM BIG
2.Instead of groaning, laugh
3.write my own fairy tale, one life experience at a time.
4.Come what may I am going to love it.
If someone doesn't understand what I mean by church, sacrament, conference, mission or God. Let me know and we will talk.
This talk fit so well with the feelings or lack there of that I had been having over the last couple of weeks. And it also tied in nicely to a comment my friend made on the phone last night. Sister Svendsen, I guess I can call her by her first name now, Brooke told me last night on the phone; After I explained that I was still having a hard time adjusting to real life again, said "I had the same problem until one of my friends told me that I was the one complicating my life". She went on to tell me that life is simple. At the moment she told me that I was doing one of those eye rolls and thinking to myself, yeah right life is just complicated. However, that night on my knees in prayer I was impressed upon to reconsider. But of anyone that knows me I am pretty persistent when decided upon a course of action. So I wasn't fully convinced. ( I am kind of embarrassed to admit that but hey we all make mistakes, mine are just a little more frequently occurring than others) But what really convinced me was today in church. When this person was speaking about not getting caught up in adversity but understanding Gods divine purpose and moving forward. I have been so focused on not letting myself and others down, I forgot to dance in the rain. I am not referring to the music scene that includes Fred Austere. But I got that idea from my mother when I was on my mission. She wrote me a story about how a man traveled alot to this certain town. When he was in the town it always seemed to rain. but on one occasion when he had brought his son along his son asked why do the people golf in the rain, work in the rain, travel in the rain. And the man noticed that his son was right even though it was raining this was an active community and he realized if they didn't do it in the rain they wouldn't do it at all. The man in Sacrament also told the story of a professional baseball player that was only Born with one arm, but instead of giving up he pursued his dream of playing baseball. And it became a fairy tale. He danced in the rain. Our rain clouds might be different then his but that doesn't matter as long as we choose not to let the rain push us inside. We gotta Dance! Speaking of fairy tales my friend Brooke also informs me that life is a fairy tale and we are the authors. It's all what you make it to be. It's nice to have friends who believe in fairies. and Who encourage you to dream big.
My new goals
1.DREAM BIG
2.Instead of groaning, laugh
3.write my own fairy tale, one life experience at a time.
4.Come what may I am going to love it.
If someone doesn't understand what I mean by church, sacrament, conference, mission or God. Let me know and we will talk.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
The Capital
The legislative session for Utah is now in full swing. And I have the great privilege to accompany one of Utah's top lobbyists(W. Clark Aposhian) on occasion, to mingle with the elected representatives, activist and staff that walk the halls of the Utah State Capital.
What do we lobby for?
It is something intrinsic to Utah culture as much as green jello and mini vans. An issue that penetrates the bonds of ethnicity, socio-economic standing, and gender.
We protect the rights of Utah residents to posses and retain their firearms. We lobby for the right to life. Utah has one of the most unique gun cultures because our laws are so permissive and many people in Utah have been associated with firearms since their youth. The issue tends to gain a lot of attention because of that. It is amazing to see all of the people who know the Lobbyist I work for or the excited looks on their faces as he walks up because they want to talk about the newest edition to their arsenal. But the best part of being an intern for a gun rights lobbyist in Utah is that your never bored. It seems that everyone has an opinion about guns or gun laws and they are never afraid to share it. It's an issue that creates very little ambivalence. Which for me means passionate debate and interesting dialogues that are never ending.
Like many that stumble into the shooting sports or find themselves fighting for the right to self defense, I have found my passion. For some a passion is a childhood dream realised as an adult but being a "gun chick" as some people call me was not exactly a childhood dream. Nor did I expect it to become my passion. As a female the gun rights issue becomes even more delineated into a yes or no battle. Most people have the tendency to question the ability of a women to speak intellectually upon the matter of firearms and self defense. And while some would disagree with that social perception of females and firearms. It stands to evidence that guns can easily become the most popular subject in a male dominated conversation and be a conversation killer when introduced by a female. On the other hand you could become the most popular girl around if you know a little about firearms. (just be gentle, men get offended when you know more about firearms then they do). I hope that my efforts can show that women don't have to be a stereo type to carry a weapon in self defense. As much as I hate to admit it we women are at a disadvantage when it comes to self defense and to me women of any kind need to be more aware of and retain the option to defend themselves with something that equalizes that disparity. Firearms are for mothers protecting their children, for grandmothers, and aunts. For single women living in the suburbs to those trying to survive in the big cities. Firearms in the hands of women should be looked upon with respect and honor not disgust and silence. Eleanor Roosevelt carried a firearm in self defense. When I think of Eleanor Roosevelt my first impressions are not raging vigilantly but they are of grace, dignity, intelligence and refinement. She was a great women with a renowned reputation of being elegant and having good reasonable taste. This is the impression I feel should be handed to other intelligent hard working women that choose to defend themselves in a like manner. A change in social perception of women and guns is needed. A great ambition that for now will be submitted to the 5 people that read this blog and maybe if I work hard enough will become a reality some day.
Well I digress, seems I had alot more to say about that then I originally intended. But back to the capital. Last week I was able to sit in while Clark Aposhian and others met with the Speaker of the House Dave Clark and the President of the Senate Mike Waddops to talk about the legislation for this session. Clark always says that if you like sausages than never go to a sausage factory to see them made. and if you have respect for the law then never go see how there made either. But I find the process fascinating. Of course I don't eat alot of sausages and I don't follow alot of, Uh... Anyways I enjoy my time watching the process of law and all the inner workings and different views that are brought to the table. I guess for a imaginative mind like mine own that thrives on philosophy the capital becomes an intellectual feeding ground.
So here's to the 2009 legislative session. Let's hope we can still eat sausages after this one.
What do we lobby for?
It is something intrinsic to Utah culture as much as green jello and mini vans. An issue that penetrates the bonds of ethnicity, socio-economic standing, and gender.
We protect the rights of Utah residents to posses and retain their firearms. We lobby for the right to life. Utah has one of the most unique gun cultures because our laws are so permissive and many people in Utah have been associated with firearms since their youth. The issue tends to gain a lot of attention because of that. It is amazing to see all of the people who know the Lobbyist I work for or the excited looks on their faces as he walks up because they want to talk about the newest edition to their arsenal. But the best part of being an intern for a gun rights lobbyist in Utah is that your never bored. It seems that everyone has an opinion about guns or gun laws and they are never afraid to share it. It's an issue that creates very little ambivalence. Which for me means passionate debate and interesting dialogues that are never ending.
Like many that stumble into the shooting sports or find themselves fighting for the right to self defense, I have found my passion. For some a passion is a childhood dream realised as an adult but being a "gun chick" as some people call me was not exactly a childhood dream. Nor did I expect it to become my passion. As a female the gun rights issue becomes even more delineated into a yes or no battle. Most people have the tendency to question the ability of a women to speak intellectually upon the matter of firearms and self defense. And while some would disagree with that social perception of females and firearms. It stands to evidence that guns can easily become the most popular subject in a male dominated conversation and be a conversation killer when introduced by a female. On the other hand you could become the most popular girl around if you know a little about firearms. (just be gentle, men get offended when you know more about firearms then they do). I hope that my efforts can show that women don't have to be a stereo type to carry a weapon in self defense. As much as I hate to admit it we women are at a disadvantage when it comes to self defense and to me women of any kind need to be more aware of and retain the option to defend themselves with something that equalizes that disparity. Firearms are for mothers protecting their children, for grandmothers, and aunts. For single women living in the suburbs to those trying to survive in the big cities. Firearms in the hands of women should be looked upon with respect and honor not disgust and silence. Eleanor Roosevelt carried a firearm in self defense. When I think of Eleanor Roosevelt my first impressions are not raging vigilantly but they are of grace, dignity, intelligence and refinement. She was a great women with a renowned reputation of being elegant and having good reasonable taste. This is the impression I feel should be handed to other intelligent hard working women that choose to defend themselves in a like manner. A change in social perception of women and guns is needed. A great ambition that for now will be submitted to the 5 people that read this blog and maybe if I work hard enough will become a reality some day.
Well I digress, seems I had alot more to say about that then I originally intended. But back to the capital. Last week I was able to sit in while Clark Aposhian and others met with the Speaker of the House Dave Clark and the President of the Senate Mike Waddops to talk about the legislation for this session. Clark always says that if you like sausages than never go to a sausage factory to see them made. and if you have respect for the law then never go see how there made either. But I find the process fascinating. Of course I don't eat alot of sausages and I don't follow alot of, Uh... Anyways I enjoy my time watching the process of law and all the inner workings and different views that are brought to the table. I guess for a imaginative mind like mine own that thrives on philosophy the capital becomes an intellectual feeding ground.
So here's to the 2009 legislative session. Let's hope we can still eat sausages after this one.
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