Old Catholic Schools

This piece in the Post today discusses how former Catholic schools in the District are being converted into charter schools. Personally, I'm a fan of this concept: can't afford to keep struggling Catholic schools open? Convert them, so that the education and discipline remains. Give students a choice--choice being the operative word--to attend somewhere beside their usual horrid public school.

But this still makes me sad, that Catholic schools close and so many are so unaffordable. It makes me wonder about the students in the halls of St. Veronica, which is a charter now. I hope they appreciate the education they receive there. I'm glad they are still halls of learning. But it's bittersweet the Catholic option had to close in the first place.

As to whether I'd say my future children to a Catholic school? Maybe, if I could afford it. Maybe, if I could stomach it. That is a question for another date, though...

The Insipid Bag Tax

This article sums up my feelings about this stupid, insipid, nonsensical, idiotic bag tax.

The owners of Chocolate Moose, which sells quirky gifts and jewelry as well as candy, were certain the tax didn't apply to them. Although they received the notice the district sent to all retail food establishments, candy accounts for just 10% or 20% of sales, says co-owner Marcia Levi. "I don't consider myself a food establishment," she says. When another store owner asked what she was going to do about the regulation, she decided to call the city, just to be on the safe side. "I explained to them the situation—that only a small part of my business is food," she said. "They said it does not matter."

The minutiae of the law.

The law specifically excludes bags that "package bulk items, such as fruit, vegetables, nuts, grains, candy, or small hardware items." It also excludes those that "contain or wrap frozen foods, meat, or fish...flowers, potted plants, or other items where dampness may be a problem." Other exceptions include unwrapped prepared foods and bakery goods, as well as bags provided by pharmacists to contain prescription drugs, newspaper bags, door-hanger bags and laundry dry-cleaning bags. Also tax free: "Bags sold in packages containing multiple bags intended for use as garbage, pet waste, or yard waste bags."

Seriously, a "user fee" like this is a tax. I already pay enough in taxes, and yes, I am extremely skeptical that this is going toward so-called clean-up efforts for the Anacostia river. Seriously, how do these plastic CVS and Safeway bags end up in the water? And if you live NOWHERE near the river, really, do those bags bought in Georgetown or anywhere in NW or NE end up in the river? No. If anything, tax the shops that border the river. Or just ban all plastic bags and make paper ones free. By charging for paper bags, and letting shopkeepers keep some of the profits, then it defeats the purpose of cleaning the river. Because the river won't need to be cleaned, unless paper bags are needlessly polluting it.

Argh. I get angry even thinking about it.

For more fury, read this thread.

AM Workout

After a solid eight hours of sleep at the JW Marriott, I was on the treadmill by 6:30 a.m. Knocked out four miles. I almost could go back to the gym tonight, b/c I've almost forgotten it! And I did have an indulgent meal last night of calamari and seafood pasta, not to mention wine.

Though I guess this means I can have a good morning workout, provided I get eight hours of sleep, which is a rare thing. I don't particularly enjoy dependency on Tylenol PM, but hey, it works for now. Ideally, morning workouts would be great. I would like more evening time, but at the same time, there is something cathartic about an evening run.

Sigh. Why won't the days just get longer?!?! I hate winter.

This afternoon is dragging. Busy morning and I'm totally unmotivated right now.
Ugh.

Is it Six yet?

Lack of sleep.

Annoying emails.

Disappointing lunch.

Mild weather.

Frustration.

Is it time to go home yet?

PS7 and Cooking Light

PS7 was terrific last night. Menu included tuna sliders, Buzzed Beef: Coffee-crusted Tenderloin, mushrooms, potato cake, Bell’s Porter butter & reduction, and Bosc Pear Mousse Cassis with shortbread crumble. Yum. It was a fun night out, and it reminded me we needed to splurge a bit more.

I'm enjoying a quiet Sunday. I bought the Cooking Light: Way to Cook cookbook, which has some of the basic techniques and recipes I've been lacking. Some good ideas in here!

And watching trashy tv!

Come Saturday

I love Saturdays. Best day of the week, I think.

I did another Lincoln Memorial run and then we're going out with Bill & Jen to PS7 tonight for restaurant week extension. The menu looks fantastic...I am excited!

I also got a new blue gym bag at Target. I've been eyeing it for awhile, so glad I took the plunge. I also leafed through this awesome new Cooking Light cookbook, that takes some cooking practices down to the basics. I might need to get that too!!

A Right to Life

Today is the annual pro-life march in DC. A few interesting pieces I saw in connection with this:

• Sarah Palin and Bristol appear on a magazine cover talking about how happy they were that they "chose" life.
• Tim Tebow and his mother are appearing in a commercial during the Superbowl for Focus on the Family on the pro-life cause.
• And I don't know if the scheduling on this was coincidental, but Private Practice featured an episode last night on the pregnant 15 year old daughter of two of the doctors. I don't usually watch the show, but I was curious at how they were going to treat the discussion of abortion. The mother wanted her daughter to abort, despite the fact that she had always been against abortion. However, the daughter could not go through it. A sequence at the end had the mother trying to show her daughter how horrible childbirth was, but all the daughter could consider was how wonderful it was to have the baby born alive. I thought the show was compelling, and it was very life affirming. It was a mistake for the 15 year old to become sexually active, but making that "choice" to have the baby would not be a mistake.

Yes, these mothers are all "choosing" life, but none of them really considered it a choice. I don't agree with Addison, that the baby isn't a baby until after 24 weeks or whatever arbitrary date she decided. It's true: an abortion stops a beating heart. I don't know how anyone can view that not be anything but murder. Unless the baby was going to die, and kill the mother, I don't see how there can be an exception.

Angry Party

I think this piece on the "Fall of the House of Kennedy" sums up voter perspectives pretty well.

The central battle in our time is over political primacy. It is a competition between the public sector and the private sector over who defines the work and the institutions that make a nation thrive and grow.

My research on the Paycheck Fairness Act reveals how true that is. Who should determine wages, private firms or the government? Who determines how much work is valued, the employer or the employee?

Until the Obama exception, the only recent Democrats electable into the presidency had to be centrist Southerners little known to the country. Every post-Kennedy liberal who tried, failed, including Teddy.

Yes, there is a certain distaste for the Massachusetts liberals like Michael Dukakis or John Kerry who have tried for the presidency. No one in the middle of this country could stand someone like them, condescending and beholden to special elite eastern interests.

Enter the Obama administration, the first one born and raised inside this public bubble, with zero private-sector Cabinet members. Act one: a $787 billion stimulus bill, which they brag mainly saved state and local jobs. Then came the six-month odyssey for Obama's $1 trillion health-care bill, dripping with taxes. Independent voters felt like everything was being sucked into a public-sector vortex.

How true. They turn to public teet to fund the jobs that are held by the unionists who vote for them. And they take from the private sector and the people who don't depend on government hand-outs.

It is about anger, though I agree that the media tries to spin in that way. It's not just Republicans who are angry, though. Scott Brown needed some Dem and Independent votes to win. There weren't enough Republicans in Massachusetts for him to win. Now the only hope is that anger will transcend rage and result in reform. I'm tired of Republicans acting liking RINOs. 2008 was a much-needed wake-up call, but I think the electorate finally turned off the snooze alarm and got up out of bed, ready to work.

More on Brown

Like the WSJ piece:

Many Members may be curled on the floor in a fetal position now that the GOP has won even in the People's Republic of Massachusetts. (We'd love to eavesdrop on the next Blue Dog caucus meeting, or Indiana Senator Evan Bayh's conversations with his pollster.) And assuming they're not paper tigers, Bart Stupak (D., Mich.) and his band of 10 or so pro-life Democrats have said they can't accept the Senate language on funding abortions.

Even if one of these partisan efforts in brute political force succeeded in passing a bill, the effort would only further enrage the public and lead to an even larger Democratic rout in November.

The sensible alternative would be for Democrats to concede how badly they have misread the mandate of their 2008 victory and the public mood. They were elected to fix the economy and to replace a tapped-out GOP, not to exhume and pass every dead 20th-century liberal dream.

The place to start such a rethinking is on health care, by dumping the House and Senate bills and negotiating one that can attract Republican votes. A de minimis package that fixed some of the cost-drivers embedded in the tax code and added refundable tax credits to help the uninsured wouldn't be our policy ideal, but it would be better than the vast new entitlement spending, taxation and central planning that is ObamaCare. Mr. Brown (like everyone) says he supports universal coverage, and what an irony it would be if he and other Republicans ultimately voted for a more moderate plan that saved Democrats from their worst ideological obsessions.

And I like some of these headlines:

• Dazed Dems Rethink Entire Strategy (Politico)
• Dems in Disarray Over Healthcare (Politico)
• Democrats Point Fingers After Loss (CNN)
• White House Seeks to Confront Political Crisis (Washington Post)
• GOP Win in Mass. Puts Dems on Defensive (CBS)
• Recriminations Fly Among Democrats (Newsweek)
• Room for Debate: Why Are the Democrats Always in Disarray? (NYTimes)
  

Ah, am loving it.

Scott Brown Wins!

By at least five points. A good night for this country. Bye bye health care reform, at least in its current incarnation.

Back to the Scotch and Fox News...

The Blind Side

Finally went to see the Blind Side this afternoon. Terrific movie, very positive. Sandra Bullock was amazing, and it reminded me why she has always been one of my favorite actresses. Michael Oher's story was pretty amazing, even if they took some liberties with it. And if he is as half as positive about his misfortunes as a child as the film portrayed him to be, it's such an important lesson. There was no reason someone like him should have ended up an NFL player, drafted in the first round, first runner-up to the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. But he did that.

A good man and a good role model. One reason to root for the Ravens (though until the Superbowl, it's Indy and Nola!).

Boo

So the Cowboys game did not end so well. Boo. Well, hopefully this just means good things for next season, right? And they still beat the Eagles 3x!!

We also ate out weight in calories. Actually, red meat. Two straight days of meat. I don't even want dinner. We tried to recreate a botana platter with fajitas, cheese, tomatoes, etc. etc. So full. Ate too many chippies, too. Also hung out with G's little girls, who are super cute and sweet. Sigh. They asked me if I had a baby swimming in my belly. LOLOLOL.

To Start the Day...

I had a good run back/forth to the Lincoln Memorial. About 7.7 miles? Hard to tell. I should have asked for a Garmin! Anyway, I did need to start some longer weekend runs in preparation for the half. I can't believe I signed up for that in a couple of months, eek! A beautiful, mild morning. The Memorial had flowers to mark the spot where MLK stood so many years ago.

We have dinner plans with N&M tonight and of course the big game tomorrow, with all of its food! I am baking carrot cake cupcakes now for T's bday.

Be back later...

Happiness?

I saw this blurb on People about Noah Wyle's separation, and it reminded me of something I was thinking about last night. Are there any "Hollywood" couples you'd be really floored to see get divorced? There are some happy Hollywood couples, right?

These were a few I came up with...

Heidi Klum and Seal seem truly happy, and with four children, they seem to be thriving. They are a sweet family.

Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick are long-time favorites of mine.

Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan.

Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy

I mean, how many more are there?

Some celebs you consider a bit more grounded...Sandra Bullock, maybe...but there aren't many. And how sad is that? Maybe I should account for more of the non-A list types. But this all just makes me sad.

Three Things

1. Horrible, nightmarish images from Haiti are flooding the airwaves, the internet. They speak to an unspeakable tragedy. Never forget.

In a way, it is eerily reminiscent of 9/11, because people don't know where to go, don't know what to do. They don't know where their loved ones, and they don't know whether to mourn or cry or still hold out hope. I cannot imagine.

2. The race between Scott Brown and Martha Coakley is turning into something too close to call. But the youtube moment was awesome.

3. Code Pink. You are idiots.

The Age of Lincoln

To transition into the Civil War era, I picked up a copy of The Age of Lincoln a few months ago, and I just finished it over the weekend. It took me a little while to read--I haven't been reading much lately, and there was a lot of pontificating in the book--but the book was a worthwhile read. It was a more a political history than a book about Lincoln, in some ways. And half of the book was dedicated to Reconstruction, after his assassination. Actually, I was most interested in this account, because the crimes committed against angry, racist white Southerners (Democrats) aren't discussed very much. It's forgotten history, in many respects. And to have so many gains followed by such a deprivation of rights is so tragic.

I'm moving now into Battle Cry of Freedom, with a side of Crisis and Command. I picked up the latter in wake of recent work-related protests. This review in the Washington Post is interesting, and seems pretty balanced. And I agree: a book on executive authority with no discuss of James K. Polk! I don't get that AT ALL!

Class Act

I could care less who hosts the Tonight Show, but I do feel something for Conan O'Brien. This is classy:

Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009. Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me. I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future. It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and, just as important, some degree of ratings support from the prime-time schedule. Building a lasting audience at 11:30 is impossible without both...

So it has come to this: I cannot express in words how much I enjoy hosting this program and what an enormous personal disappointment it is for me to consider losing it. My staff and I have worked unbelievably hard and we are very proud of our contribution to the legacy of The Tonight Show. But I cannot participate in what I honestly believe is its destruction. Some people will make the argument that with DVRs and the Internet a time slot doesn't matter. But with the Tonight Show, I believe nothing could matter more.

I can't believe how badly NBC has bungled this. Almost from the get-go, the moving Jay Leno to 10 p.m. and not showcasing television shows at that hour has been a flop. And now they want to go back on their word.

I'm sure Jay Leno has been screwed, too, though I feel less sympathy for him. He didn't have to sign that contract that he'd voluntarily leave 6 years ago. Even if they strong-armed him into going, he could have held firm.

I am guessing that Fox is going to snag Conan, the guy who helped the Simpsons become such a great show two decades ago. We shall see!

Working for a Living

The other day, I received one of those Social Security statements in the mail, in preparation for the upcoming birthday. It struck me I've been working, and thus paying, for Social Security since 1992. This is my 19th year of working. I've officially been working more than half of my lifetime, and have been for a couple of years. And at 33 years and 10 months, I have, what, four more decades to go, give or take? What a depressing thought!!!!!

I don't know when I transitioned over here to making this as a career, not a job. It happens overnight, doesn't it, the same way you go from 23 to 34 and you still see yourself as 17, at least on some days. It's hard to tell someone who is at that stage what things will be like, how you wind up places you don't ever think you'd be in, or remain in places long after things have passed. I think about C, who left DC 18 months ago, and maybe is returning, after a vocation didn't click. And maybe she'll go back, who knows? She wouldn't be the first to come and go and come back again. And maybe it works out differently the second time around.

A job is a paycheck; work is a way of life. In between is what matters.

Day Ten

I ran another 10K treadmill run this morning, at my 9 minute/mile pace. I felt good the entire time, like I could have gone further. Maybe it's the bananas? I still think they are nasty, nasty fruit, but as part of my vow to eat more fruits/veggies and eat good running food/fuel, they will have to do.

And how 'bout them Cowboys!!! Now they play Minnesota next week. Good game Boys, and yes, the hubby is a happy boy. I have to say my spaghetti & meatballs was good football food, and it probably needs to share credit with the banana for the run.

The Christmas tree is finally coming down today. I hate the sight of Christmas trees lonely by the side of the road. But this was a good tree, and I am looking forward to having the house back in order. Plus the second tv is finally upstairs!!

It's day ten of the year, and I've blogged every day. I don't expect to keep this up, but I realized how much I miss this journal keeping. Someday I'll have to go through the journals of old, some entries 23 years old already. Wow, I have diaries older than my assistant. The first ten days of 2010 have been good ones. Hopefully this a good precedent for the rest of the year.

Saturday Runs

The big event tonight is the Cowboys-Eagles game, so while I'm enjoying a few quiet minutes before the craziness begins, I thought I'd update!

I had a good 10K treadmill run that I did in intervals...when there is no fresh reading material that is the best way to make the time pass, and I rarely regret that I did. I need to start planning for the half...which is intimidating, still. I know I can do it, but I want to do it fast, and I want to do it strong. I am so tired of this cold weather, because I really want to get in one good outdoor run a week. It's supposed to go into the 40s next week, which is a big improvement. I really do detest winter. It's so dreary and so dark, and I miss having the daylight after work to get in a good run, which is so invigorating and stress-reducing all at the same time. But at least two more months of this, sigh.

I plan to increase my mileage a bit in long Saturday runs, but I'm not going to train that much differently than the Ten Miler. Strive for five work outs a week, or four depending on scheduling. Run at least four of those sessions, and maybe a shorter spurt if I work out more than four times a week. I feel like I don't get that same burn or that "runner's high" without running. Though I should publicly state that I really do need to get more flexible. I feel so creaky and stiff and old!! Sigh. I was eyeing the yoga bags at Target. A good yoga bag and mat might not be such a bad birthday gift, or just a gift to myself. I need to get past the intimidation factor, too, but I never thought I could be a real runner. So maybe I can be a yogi, too, someday.

Slow Day: Five Random Things

Listening to Mumford & Sons after hearing them mentioned on a Washington Post political chat, of all things. Loving the first song The Cave.

College football season is over, boo.

Dallas Cowboys playoff game tomorrow night, yeah, hopefully.

What to make for dinner tonight??? Why am I so hungry today? What I really want is some frozen yogurt.

SO cold out! We got a little bit of snow last night; I am SO sick of winter, too.

Where I've Been..

When I was driving to the gym tonight, I was trying to think of some of the cities I've been to for work. A sampling:

Detroit
Columbus
Cincinnati
Philly
Boston
NYC
Baltimore
Miami
Tallahassee
Atlanta
Charleston
Houston
Dallas
Austin
Chicago
Indy
LA
San Francisco
Honolulu
San Diego
Seattle
Portland
Little Rock
Kansas City
Wichita
Topeka
Lawrence
Denver
Jackson
New Orleans
Birmingham
Minneapolis
Richmond
Charleston WV
Toledo

At least 35 places. Wow. I've been lucky. A few places I haven't been...Iowa, Charlotte, Raleigh, Memphis (except the airport!), Nashville, Milwaukee (biggest miss I think!), Vegas (for work), Sacramento, Phoenix, Albuquerque, Orlando, Tampa...I am sure there are more.

And of course, there are places like Napa and the OC I left off, too!

Newish Music

I've been enjoying the two new songs I've heard from Basia Bulat, Gold Rush and Heart of My Own. "In the Night" is one of my favorite tunes, and I'm really liking her new stuff. The tone of her voice is edgy and has just the right rawness to make her one of my favorite female artists. Sort of like Brandi Carlile.

I'm also enjoying the new Laura Marling tune. I really need to make the resolution this year to get to some more concerts, and to drag the husband to hear some of the new tunes. We have a great venue nearby the in the Rock & Roll Hotel. Not to mention the Birchmere, Iota, 930 Club, Black Cat, etc. Sigh. I really should be a rocker chick. It's not THAT much trouble to keep up with things and know what is cool, right? It's really more trouble to find anyone to go with!

Retro

This article talks about the re-issuance of the Baby Sitters Club series, news which even provoked a story in the New York Times. Yes, this is interesting, though I'm torn about whether the Sweet Valley High resurgence is slightly more interesting. I was definitely a fan of these books back in the late 1980s, because I was about these girls age, and hey, who didn't like baby sitting? The girls seemed like sweeter, nicer ones than the ones I was stuck going to school with, and I couldn't help thinking "Wow, Mary Ann has all of these great friends, what about me?" Sigh.

There's always the facebook-esque vindication when someone formerly athletic is crowing about being able to walk four miles. Big whoop. Maybe books like this allows our revisionist fantasies about what school was like, what friendship was like back when we were that age. Or maybe it just recalls what we hoped life was like back in the day, a fonder reminiscence of life at 13 in 8th grade, when quiet nerdy girls had boyfriends named Logan and they had lots of spending $$ to buy wardrobes far cooler than I could ever hope to attain. Where circles of friends would last.

Though gosh, how young is an 8th grader? Twenty years younger than me, and I have "friends" with daughters almost that age. I used to think that was so old and cool, and now, wow, that seems so damn young.

Two links from the holidays

I like both of these:

Five turning points of the decade: 9/11, the Iraq War, Katrina, the Financial Crisis, and the 08 election. I think this pretty much nailed it. September 11 was the defining moment of the decade, though this is also true:

Some moments that seem to be turning points shortly after they happen, such as Operation Desert Storm in 1990-1991, seem less important over time. Others that we don't pay as much attention to, such as the first bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993, look much more consequential with the passage of time.

And regarding Detroit.

Washington on Detroit

Once again the Post covers the state of Detroit on its front page today. The news isn't good, though there are always those who are "optimistic" that things will improve. A side piece on the youth in Detroit claim they will need to hit the road to f ind jobs. Though statements like this annoy me:

Brandy Murdoch, a 19-year-old Macomb County resident interviewed for the poll, said she's become more discouraged about her future in the region.

"You have to go to school for a long, long time if you want to find a decent career and stay in Michigan," she said. "There are no opportunities here."

Murdoch and a friend plan to move to Georgia this fall in search of good jobs. She says her mother approves: "My mom says to me, 'Hey if I was 19, I would move in a heartbeat, too."

Like I wanted to be in school for twenty years? Longer than this chica has been alive? Yes, you do need an education. You do need to become a skilled worker. And yeah, there are some opportunities in Michigan, though new rules apply. Manufacturing positions and the auto companies aren't going to be there like in the past few generations.

There's a gubernatorial election in Michigan this year, and hopefully, people will wise up up and realize they are not better off than they were eight years ago. It's a turning point for the city of Detroit, the state of Michigan, and this economy. Folks are right be optimistic, though--there's no where to go but up.

The Day After

The day leaving the beach is always bittersweet. You've had a wonderful time with friends you don't get to see very often, you play fun games (poker, Loaded Questions, Scene It Simpsons and Seinfeld) and see great movies (The Hangover, Up in the Air, Love Affair), you eat amazing food (fajitas, steaks, pizza), and you don't need to be answering emails and having to wake up early or any of the boring, wearing daily activities. But there's a part of you tired of the excessive drinking, the out-of-the-ordinary food, the inflexibility of your schedule, the limited opportunities to work out. You are ready to go back to ordinary time. Just like the daily grind makes you appreciate vacation so much, vacation makes you appreciate the daily grind. Ironic, no? Plus you get Chick-fil-A on the way home :-)

I will miss Bethany. I'm not sure I want to go back to work, but I am ready to take on 2010. Best wishes ahead for a wonderful new year.

So this is the new year...

and we are at Bethany with friends, celebrating and missing some. Eating good food, drinking too much booze, and playing card games and board games and watching football. But here we are all again, together for the most part.

I am not one for resolutions, though a few come to mind. Eat healthier. Run a half-marathon in two-hours or so. Try to pray daily. Try to read at least one substantive news article a day on law and policy. And learn patience, and come up with a plan.

And write a little something every day, or at least five times a week. We'll see. I'd like to be a writer again, journaling like I did twenty plus years ago. The only way to be a writer is to write, so I will try and see what I can do.