After The Rain

"After the rain has fallen there is a moment, just a glimpse of a second when all of the world stands perfectly silent, when everything seems to a stop..."

Click here to read the rest of this refreshing patter by the inspirational Liz Strauss.

Her feel good posts are the cream in my morning coffee.

The Gift

Some folks call the day after Thanksgiving "Black Friday." I assume because the stores all go from red ink to black on this busiest shopping day of the year. Some folks swear by the tradition, and catch a major buzz off the manic rat race orgy of mindless consumerism.

Not me.

I hide on Black Friday. I eat leftovers, put up my Yule Tree, string the lights, burn some candles, and hang out in my big back yard with my dogs.

Today, the skies were blue, and the weather, just gorgeous. I was sittin on my back deck, overlooking the woods, and thinking, well, speaking with my mind, really;

"The Red Tails will be brooding chicks in early March, which means they will be building new nests in February, and mating in January. That's only a bit more than a month away. Oh I hope my feathered Friends come back to nest here. I would so love to watch them, learn from them and share with them. My tree line is perfect. There is a stream, and plenty of small game. Oh I do hope they nest here this year."

Now, I kid you not, dear readers, it was at that very moment, a HUGE Red Tail Hawk appeared over the rooftop of my house and circled above my tree line for a good twenty minutes. I called my husband and son out to watch, telling them the story. My son ran in to get his friend.

"LOOK! That's Mommies Spirit Guide! She called him, and HE CAME!"

There are some Gifts, money just can't buy.

Plan B Access

Thanks to Hillary Clinton, and Co. Plan B is now available over the counter. This means a woman can go to the local drug store and buy a pill that will prevent pregnancy, so long as she gets it within 72 hours of intercouse. But here's the rub: some pharmacys refuse to stock it. Therefore, if a woman lives in an area where she can't get to a pharmacy that has Plan B, she will end up facing the abortion question.

I dont get it. yanno, if the pro life folks want to reduce abortion, you would think they would be all gun ho about Plan B. Must be they don't really care about babies...they just don't want women to have sex.

Anyway, follow this Link to put pressure on all the big chain pharmacys to stock Plan B.

It's a good thing.

Off The Wall: A Poetry Carnival

My dear friend Garnet is hosting a poetry carnival over at The Glittering Muse.

It's full of yummy thought provoking stuff, including a humble little effort by yours truly.

Check it out.

ACTION ALERT

Feministing has a rather alarming little news flash to share with all of you bloggettes out there:

According to Jessica at Feministing, it seems Bush has appointed an abstinence-only nut to oversee reproductive rights funding.

"The Bush administration has hired Dr. Eric Keroack to oversee Title X funding—the only federal program devoted entirely to family planning and reproductive health.

Keroack, who is currently the medical director of a Massachusetts pregnancy crisis center (you know, the folks that Lie to Women), will be the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs.

Keroack is not only a well-known anti-choicer, he’s also a major proponent of abstinence-only education…and when I say proponent, I mean fucking insane person."

-From Jessica at Feministing.

Ladies, if you are not STEAMING over this, you should be! Bush has just appointed a guy who is against birth control to be in charge of Flipping BIRTH CONTROL!!!!!!!
Did you catch the little quote about "saying that promiscuous women will not be able to form long-lasting relationships because they have used up all of their "bonding" hormone on casual sex." Oh MY DOG! What midevil monistary did this guy crawl out from under? The old argument that only "Promiscuous Women have abortions is SOOOOOO NOT EVEN REAL, I can't believe Bush would....AUGGGHHH AUGGGHHH AUGGGHHHHH.............

"This physician is abusing the trust and credibility that the public lends to him by publishing this completely baseless & unethical study. The public can file a complaint against him with the American Board of Obsetrics/Gynecology, where he is certified, and the Massachusetts Board of Medicine, where he is licensed. You can reach each at:
http://www.abog.org/about/contact.html
http://www.massmedboard.org/consumer/complaint.shtm

Also:

CONTACT The WHITE HOUSE TODAY!
PROTEST
CALL YOUR LOCAL NEWS AND DEMAND THEY COVER THE STORY
DONATE TO PLANNED PARENTHOOD AND NARAL RIGHT NOW!

http://www.ppaction.org/campaign/replace_keroack2

http://www.plannedparenthood.org/

http://www.naral.org/

http://www.firstgov.gov/Contact.shtml

And send an e-mail to Cecile Richards, thanking her for standing up for your rights. Give her some money, offer your support, and tell her Kelley Bell sent ya.

You can send your message to Cecile through
Andrea Hagelgans
202-973-4844
andrea.hagelgans@ppfa.org.

A nice pat on the back

Well, I guess a girl just can't wallow in her own depression for even a moment around here. Just when I start whining about all my aches and pains, I get a message of hope from Maggie with her e-mail on positive thinking, and THEN I get a note from two gals I dont even know, Laurie and Deb, who inform me that my "Get Out the Vote" story was published in the 27th Carnival of Feminists, even though I did not submit it.

Ya-all are so sweet.

Now if you folks don't let up a bit, I'm going to end up doing the happy dance and throw my back out again. Geesh, Can't you just let a woman suffer in peace?

Empty Cup

A rough week it has been.

The ol back injury is inflamed.
A root canal on Wednesday,
stomach upset and constipation
from the pain pills.

Pain, Pain, and more f*cking pain.

Sigh

Let's hold a pep rally on percoset!

I feel like Hunter Thompson
Sitting on the sidelines
with a cigarette and a set of pom-poms.

There is nothing more pathetic
than an optimist
with an empty cup.

Pain takes the mind to dark places,
of which the sane dare not speak.

I hope I snap out of this soon.

Gloria Steinem and Cecile Richards Get Ohio to Vote!

The Pro Choice women of Columbus, Ohio were gathered together to get out the vote. Planned Parenthood's Kelli Hykes worked as the driving force for the ground troops. I knew it was going to be a Big Event.

(Bravo Kelli, for a job well done!)

Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards and feminist activist Gloria Steinem were scheduled to make celebrity appearances. I assumed they would take the podium, offer speeches, and cap it off with the standard photo-op meet-n-greet to rally the volunteers, but it did not quite work out that way.

Kelli greeted me with a warm welcome when I arrived, and handed me a packet of information about the evening's events.

"Instead of working the phones, I want you to go door to door as the leader of my VIP group. Do you have a car?"

"Sure thing, It seats six. Where's my group?"

"I want you to take Cecile Richards and Gloria Steinem."

At that moment, my heart went into a state of tachycardia, but I did my best to nod in an offhand, businesslike fashion, while thumbing through the paperwork.

"Um-Hm. I see. Could you excuse me for just a moment? I'll be right back."

I made a dash for the bathroom, hyperventilating into one of those little white bags used for sanitary napkin disposal. Then I went out to my car and panicked. You see, we just celebrated my daughter's twelfth birthday, and the car was still covered in grime and mess from five muddy munchkins on a sugar high.

I had three minutes, one used towellete, and an image of Gloria Steinem picking gummy bears off her shoes. I felt like Martha Stewart on a bad batch of crystal meth. But fear not my darlings, for I am Super Mom, and I managed to clean that car in less than a New York minute! (well, the front two rows anyway.) I pushed all the kid crap under the seats and on to the floor of the third row seat. While far from perfect, it would just have to do.

When I went back in, we decided to split Gloria and Cecile into two separate groups for maximum voter impact. I was all for it, as this meant Cecile would sit in the front, and my dirty little secret would be safe.

Cecile and three of her aids from Washington walked with me to the car. Cecile was so fun. Her excitement and enthusiasm for democracy are contagious. I opened the back door of my Pacifica, to demonstrate how to fold the seat for a third row passenger, guiding one of the girls to the back, but Cecile trumped me. She came from the other side and dove over the second row, into the third, spreading her six foot tall frame across the back of the car like an Olympic gymnast doing a full layout.

She was just like my kids! They never bother to fold the seat forward. They just dive in. I did not know if I should apologize for the ooey-gooies, or just offer her a pack of leftover gummy bears.

In retrospect, it must not have been all that bad. She did not seem to mind at all. Besides, she's a mom too. Maybe her car is about the same. (Either that or she is just one heck of a nice person.)
Anyway, we spent the evening going door to door, enthusiastically reminding people to vote.

I have never felt a more powerful connection to the political process than I did that night. This is what American Democracy is all about. If you have ever lost faith in our government, if you have ever felt depressed by the negative attack ads, or corruption reported on the news, folks, I can tell you; this is how you get your faith back. This is how you renew your sense of hope. You find good, like-minded people, then join up, and pitch in.


During our canvassing effort, we met a voter with a cute little dog. He said the pup was a Katrina survivor, rescued three weeks after the hurricane. I watched quietly as Cecile petted the dog and chatted with his owner. This man was a staunch lifelong, card carrying republican. Cecile did not grandstand or debate issues with him. She did not even reveal to him who she was. She was kind and respectful, and just petted the pup and listened to the story of the dog's horrific ordeal. She evoked this man's emotions, and got him thinking about the issues on a personal level. She handed him a flyer saying "Remember to vote!" but he just shook his head and said "I can't. I just can't. Not this time." It was clear; he could not bring himself to vote against his party, even though he too felt the need for change. The best he could do was abstain. Cecile offered a sympathetic smile as we prepared to move on.

I so admired her at that moment. It is clear, this woman understands, democracy is built on the foundation of listening to the people. It's not about screaming, or shouting at the opposition, it's about grass roots efforts, connecting to people, and working to make the world a better place.

When we got back, Kelli had box dinners waiting for us in the office. I sat down on a rickety fold out chair at a six foot table, littered with campaign material, and ate, with none other than feminist extrodinare, Gloria Steinem!

It's funny, when you imagine having a chance to share ideas with someone so famous and influential, the idea of eating sub sandwiches on paper napkins never enters the dream.

We had a wonderful conversation about politics, feminism, matriarchal cultures, and ancient history. (My favorite subjects, as those of you who read this blog already know.)

I liked Gloria. Her energy was so soft, like the calm of Walden Pond; still and deep, and infinitely contemplative. As a person who used to work security at rock concerts, I am accustomed to the drill when celebrities are afoot. But it was not like that at all with Ms. Steinem. She wanted to talk to everyone. Not just the superficial handshake and smile stuff. She wanted to know what we were thinking, and where we stood on the issues.

When I complimented her on her down to earth persona, she replied "You know, you can't write effectively in isolation. As writers, we need all five of our senses. We need to get out in the world and explore. The writing is meaningless if it is not connected to a sense of community."

I hope she really meant that. I think she did, and I was honored she spoke to me as a fellow writer. I gave her an envelope with a note of thanks and a CD with some of my feminist essays. I hope she reads them. I hope she likes them, and I hope my little contribution will aid these two amazing women in their efforts to make our world a better place.



Gloria told me "It's all about hope."

And hope is exactly what I feel tonight.

Just a little Teaser

WHO is that woman in the back seat of my car and WHAT is she talking about????

(Just a little teaser... Full details tomorrow.)

G'nite all. This tired pup is off to dreamland.

Doin My Betsy Ross Bit

Monday I will be working the phones as a volunteer reminding my fellow citizens to vote.

I just found out Gloria Steinam and Cecile Richards will be joining us in the trenches and then for dinner. How cool it that!?

-Stay tuned...