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Tuesday, November 30, 2004
My soul is ugly
I have Seasonal Affective Disorder. (OK, fine--you want the technical diagnosis? 239.3 Major Depressive Disorder, Recurrent, with Seasonal Pattern. Happy now?)
What does that mean? It means that every winter I have depression. Not just "Oh, I feel a little down today" depression. More like: "I want to quit my job and hide under the covers and drink gin all day" depression. The month between Thanksgiving and Christmas is always the hardest. Every year I think that it will be better, and every year I want to take the entire month off and hide. Currently, I am exhausted, despite sleeping for 9 hours last night. (If I let myself, I could sleep for about 12 hours a day and still feel tired.) I move slower than usual. I am hungry all the time. I feel restless and bored, but nothing interests me. Happily, this will all be over in about 45 days. Unhappily, right now I want to put my head in my hands and cry. And I anticipate that it will get worse before it gets better. How do I deal with SAD, you ask? I don't take medications. I tried that--they made me feel somehow "disconnected" from the rest of the world. It was like I was under water all the time. Instead I sit in front of fancy full-spectrum lighting that tries to imitate the sun, which helps. Also, I use the same cognitive therapy and behavioral techniques that I teach my clients to feel better. I'll get better. I do every year. It sucks for now, but it will be over soon. I feel sympathy for people who have life-long depression. It just goes to show that we therapists are all fucked up. I don't know a single therapist who has not had some emotional or mental illness at some point. One therapist I know is too neurotic to maintain interpersonal relationships. Another one is severely ADHD. And a third has a sexual compulsion. The difference between me and them is that I will talk about my problems. And aren't you lucky that you get to read about it? One link:
Monday, November 29, 2004
Business as usual...
My long weekend is over, and I have a vacation hangover. Each movement I make feels like I am wading through glue; every keystroke takes effort.
I want to go back to bed. Have some links, while I have some coffee:
Saturday, November 27, 2004
Taking time out of my crapulence
I'm in the middle of a four-day weekend. My original plan for the time off was to sit at home and
I figured as long as I'm here, with the cool wireless connection and everything, I might as well update this blog. Speaking of reading (which I was, although not to you), I'm currently engrossed by Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. The book is the story of two English Magicians in 1800's London. It's written in the style of the mid-late 1800's, as well. Although it is a slow read, it is excellent.
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
My neurosis (or: It's true that shrinks are mental cases)
This post is more personal than what I usually write. Be warned.
I had a big "Oh Shit" moment yesterday when I realized that I'd missed the deadline to place an ad in the December PrideSource. (PrideSource being Michigan's LGBT yellow pages.) Since I get about 80% of my business from PrideSource, this may turn out to be a significant problem. And since I strongly suspect that AIDS Partnership Michigan will lay me off in March of 2005 (due to a change in the way the government funds HIV care--thanks be to That Man), I worry about the future. The fear that I will lose my practice or that I will be unemployed is paralyzing to me. I get wounded when my personal competency is challenged, and I consider career/financial success the measure of my own competency. In other words, I'm basing my self worth on what I do for a living. That's pretty fucked up for a shrink, isn't it? For me, this is not just the money. It's the recognition--the status. It's my identity. I like having my own business because I can say that I'm Private Practice. That's the person I want to be. And, now that I've opened the business, I won't let myself close it down, because I don't like to fail. I don't want to have to look my friends and family in the face and tell them that I had to close my practice. I would feel like such a failure, and such a disappointment, to myself and to others. I know that I'm overlooking something here: I started a private practice right out of graduate school, which is never done. I am 27 years old, and I've managed to pull off something that most therapists don't even attempt until they are in their late 30's. By these measures I've been wildly successful. At the same time I don't go a single day without worrying about the future of my business. From time to time, the fear of failure consumes me. Sometimes it wakes me up in the night. I guess what I'm saying is this: Maybe I should close the damn shop before it takes over my life even more than it already has. As it is, I'm tired of working 60+ hours every week. And now I'm starting to realize that it's taking even more of my time and energy than that.
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
It's a wonderful world out there.
I had a boring evening, and a boring morning. So here are some non-boring links.
Yiddish with Dick and Jane  Ann Coulter is actually a former drag queen from Key West named Pudenda Shenanigans. Stickers to put on textbooks. My favorite: "This textbook claims that evolution is not fully accepted by scientists because it is just a theory. The author hopes to confuse you into equating 'scientific theory' with 'cockamamie theory'." I spent some time on Craigslist this morning. Always a dangerous hobby. Here's some of the best:
And, one serious link: Bob Herbert has something to say about poverty. He wonders why a country in which over 10% of families report difficulty getting enough food is concerned about how much flesh is being shown on TV.
Monday, November 22, 2004
The "Absolutely my last tour, for real, I promise this time" concert.
Based on the title of this post, you can probably guess that Jay and I saw Cher over the weekend. We had awesome seats: row 20, on the floor, in the center.
What can you say about Cher? Except that I've been singing to myself ever since... "Born in the wagon of a traveling show... Momma would dance for the money they'd throw... Daddy would do whatever he could... Preach a little gospel, sell a couple of bottles of Doctor Good."  Oh, and if the evening wasn't gay enough... These Guys were the opening act. It know it's not Charo and Flava Flav, but I'm hoping that he is jealous.
Friday, November 19, 2004
Thirty minutes that I will never get back. (And the Friday Five.)
I discovered a new joy yesterday--a little show called Dance 360. In case you don't get UPN, Dance 360 is this show where young people compete for lame prizes ($360 and an X-box) by gyrating wildly.
I tried to watch the show and pretend I understood what was happening. "Oh, he got served!" I say. But I have no idea what that means, so I'm thinking that I said it at an inappropriate time. I must have looked quite cool: Sitting on my beige suede sofa, my left-over Chinese food cooling on the leather-topped coffee table, saying "Oh, girl! I hear that!" and snapping my fingers. Friday Five 1. Your most favorite gadget: My pocket PC, hands down. I have a Dell Axim, and I love it. 2. Your most useless: That would be a kitchen gadget--I have a pickle-grabber. For those of you who were raised in a barn, a pickle-grabber is a long, thin tube from which metal spikes extend to grap the pickles at the bottom of the jar. It's totally useless because it's not actually strong enough to lift the pickles. So you can grap the pickles, but you can't lift them out of the jar. It's a tease. 3. Your most useful: Again, my pocket PC, but that's cheating, so I'll say something else. Ummm... my camera phone? I like it when someone calls, and then there's a picture of that person on the phone. That's pretty cool. 4. Best bargain gadget you've purchased: What? 5. The one you would love to receive this holiday season: An MP3 Player, I think. I have drama around the iPod, because I can't get the damn scroll thing to work. But I don't want a "second rate" player, because I'm a status queen. So I keep hoping Apple will improve the user interface on the iPod. But I doubt that will happen.
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Things that make you go "What the hell?"
In case you've had your head under a rock, Burger King is doing a new promo in which two people in chicken suits pretend to fight. I find this disturbing for several reasons:
1) Do we really need to see a cockfight on TV? Even a pretend one? (And not the good kind, either.) 2) The commercial runs with this disclaimer: "No real chickens were harmed in the making of this advertising campaign." Oh, really? Then what are those sandwiches made out of?
Wednesday, November 17, 2004
My day in court
I had to go to court to testify on behalf of a client today. I'm not going to get into the specifics of the case, because
So I will just say the following: Court isn't a fun place to go. I have been dreading this for a week. I have been reviewing and reviewing my notes. I have been thinking about possible questions and my responses. Mostly, I was under the impression that the judge would want to crucify me. I had heard horror stories from my colleagues. I was ready to endure insults to my credibility, to have my credentials demeaned, and so on. In the end, I was on the stand for about 10 minutes, and during most of that time the Judge was yelling at my client's attorney. (I feel bad for the attorney, who looked like she was about to cry.) The Judge did ask me a few questions directly, and a couple of them I did not understand, so I asked him to explain it to me.* He did, and then I answered. In total, I responded to about 5 questions, and then I was done. So I went home for lunch, and played with my cat. *-The Client's attorney was AMAZED that I would ask a Judge to explain something. Well, shit... What else would I do? If I'm going to court, I want to make sure I'm telling the truth, so if I don't understand what's being asked, I'm not going to answer. Seems pretty simple to me, but I guess other people just don't do that.
Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Nonsensical Rant (The best kind!)
I run Windows and Internet Explorer on both my office computer and my laptop. And, for the past two days, almost every time I've tried to open Hotmail on either computer, the damn site has cause IE to shut down. However, my coworker, who uses a Mac Powerbook, has noticed no difference. Ditto a friend of mine who uses Firefox.
Hmmm... So one Microsoft product is causing another Microsoft product to shut down. Let me guess--I'm sure there's some upgrade that I didn't get, right? I'm constantly getting Windows updates, like, at least three times a week. So... WHY DO I HAVE TO UPDATE EVERY DAMN TIME I LOG ON???? ANSWER ME THIS!!!! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!!!! Linux here I come.
Consolation Prize
I often mention that Jay and I live in Ferndale, Michigan, which is a suburb of Detroit. I have also mentioned that Ferndale is probably the most Left-of-Center city in Michigan. (Yes, I can back that up with electoral data. So suck on it, Ann Arbor!)
On November 2, Ferndale voters approved Instant Runoff Voting, making us the third city in the country to adopt that voting system for regular, local elections. (For the record, the first two are Berkeley, CA, and San Francisco, CA. A fourth city, Oakland, CA uses IRV for special elections.) This is very cool. IRV tends to benefit third-party candidates, and since the Green Party of Michigan has a huge presence in Ferndale, I'm thinking we'll be seeing more and more Greens in our local government. That should piss a few people off, I'm sure.
Monday, November 15, 2004
Just for you, Laura
Someone requested that I do the Friday Fives again, like I used to. So here we go, a couple of days late:
1. Do you trust your instincts? Yes I do. I always have, and they don't let me down. (In fact, when discussing a client at work I often say that I believe something because "it's a gut feeling." I'm usually right, and now my coworkers have also learned to trust my instincts.) 2. Get up and go or plan, plan, plan? Plan, plan, plan. I start every day with an intention. 3 Do you ask for directions when you are lost or do you keep on going? I keep going, but the real truth is I don't get lost. I sometimes get turned around, or go past my exit on the expressway, or something like that. But I honestly remember only a handful of times in my life that I was actually lost and couldn't find my way. 4, Right now: do you know which way is east? Of course. I'm facing east right now. 99.9% of the time I know which way I'm facing. Even on airplanes, in cars, on boats--you name it. I've always been like that--my parents used to ask me when I was a child if they were driving east or west or north or south. It's not all that hard: If you're outdoors, direction is all about the position of the sun. Just look to where the light is coming from. If you're inside without a window, just remember which direction the building's entrance faces, and re-trace your steps in your mind. 5. If a tree falls in the woods, and no one hears it -- did it make a noise? The traditional answer: Mu. The Western answer: It depends on how you define noise. If noise is defined as vibrations in the air, then yes. If you define noise as something that someone can hear, then no.
Last week was the Week from Hell. So I took Friday off as a "mental health day." (I work in a hippy-dippy profession where we actually get a certain number of "mental health days" a year. How cool is that?) Friday was wonderful--I spent the morning in the neighborhood Starbucks drinking coffee and reading. And then I spent the afternoon at home drinking Sherry and reading. I went to Westborn Market and bought fresh produce and fresh pasta for dinner, which I prepared with Jason. I had a really, really good day.
I've been feeling increasingly sluggish lately. I recognize this for what it is--my Seasonal Affective Disorder kicking in. I usually can control the SAD with full-spectrum lights, but this year I've been too lazy to even set the damn things up and turn them on. That's all I've got for now. Except for this review book called Don't Think of an Elephant, which sounds like it is probably the best piece of writing about the way that people vote, and what the Dems need to do to capture more votes in the next election. For example: Democrats have an unfortunate tendency, he says, to see campaigns as product launches, believing that if they roll out a candidate with the best features, or positions on issues, voters will support him. Republicans understand that people vote their identity, not their self-interest - that they seek out candidates whose values appear to match their own. Damn straight.
Thursday, November 11, 2004
Stuff to see and do.
I may post something more substantial later on. But for right now, content yourself with this roundup of cool stuff I've found.
Have a good day.
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Mommy, where do ugly people come from?
From here.
Captive Audience
Last night I guest lectured to a class at Wayne State University (which is where I got my MSW). The class was kind of a GLBT 101--an intro to Queer issues and the GLBT culture. The class went well; I've been doing this lecture for a couple of years now, and it always goes well. This time, though, it was nice to be able to have a captive audience to vent my frustrations about the recent anti-gay marriage ammendment to the Michigan State Constitution. It was sort of healing. *sigh of relief*
New Topic I was going to blog about something else, but I just got word that one of my former co-workers died last night. It wasn't unexpected--she left our office about eight months ago because of her failing health, and we'd had regular reports that she was getting worse. But still. It's kind of sad.
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
A story from the shrink--worth reading, even though I'm not the best storyteller.
One of our interns here at the office is attractive. I had mentioned this fact to a couple of my coworkers. But I did not tell the intern in question about this, because I didn't want to make him uncomfortable. Plus, I'm married, so who the hell cares who I think is attractive, right?
Wrong. One of my other coworkers heard about my little crush through the grapevine. He offered to take my picture with the cute intern at our last staff party. I declined the offer, saying that it would be "embarrassing for everyone involved." I thought that was the end of that. Wrong again. My coworker printed a little sign that says, "These pictures are for you, Matt. Are we embarrassed yet?" And then took pictures of the intern holding the signs and sitting at my desk. He delivered the pictures to me this morning. (And yes, I'm plenty embarrassed.) I don't know if I should be embarrassed or frightened. On to other news, this New York Times article details some of the problems that sex researchers are having with a conservative government. The article speaks for itself, so I'll refrain from commenting.
Monday, November 08, 2004
Marge Piercy, move over
I am a terrible speller. Sometimes, when I don't know how to spell a word, I open up Microsoft Word and type it, and then use the spell-checker to find the correct spelling. One day, after checking she spelling of "ennui," instead of just closing the new document I had created, I chose to save it. And then, each time I wanted to spell-check a word, I would use that document. After a while I accumulated quite a list of words. Today I was looking at the list, and thinking, "This is like refrigerator magnet poetry." And thus, I give you "Spell-Check poetry."
Intentionally precious, Speaking of Michigan (which I wasn't), I found this on Michael Moore's website this morning. I thought it was worth posting. Tongue firmly in cheek, of course. [+/-] See it...17 Reasons Not to Slit Your Wrists...by Michael Moore Dear Friends, Ok, it sucks. Really sucks. But before you go and cash it all in, let's, in the words of Monty Python, "Always look on the bright side of life!" There IS some good news from Tuesday's election. Here are 17 reasons not to slit your wrists: 1. It is against the law for George W. Bush to run for president again. 2. Bush's victory was the NARROWEST win for a sitting president since Woodrow Wilson in 1916. 3. The only age group in which the majority voted for Kerry was young adults (Kerry: 54%, Bush: 44%), proving once again that your parents are always wrong and you should never listen to them. 4. In spite of Bush's win, the majority of Americans still think the country is headed in the wrong direction (56%), think the war wasn't worth fighting (51%), and don't approve of the job George W. Bush is doing (52%). (Note to foreigners: Don't try to figure this one out. It's an American thing, like Pop Tarts.) 5. The Republicans will not have a filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the Senate. If the Democrats do their job, Bush won't be able to pack the Supreme Court with right-wing ideologues. Did I say "if the Democrats do their job?" Um, maybe better to scratch this one. 6. Michigan voted for Kerry! So did the entire Northeast, the birthplace of our democracy. So did 6 of the 8 Great Lakes States. And the whole West Coast! Plus Hawaii. Ok, that's a start. We've got most of the fresh water, all of Broadway, and Mt. St. Helens. We can dehydrate them or bury them in lava. And no more show tunes! 7. Once again we are reminded that the buckeye is a nut, and not just any old nut -- a poisonous nut. A great nation was felled by a poisonous nut. May Ohio State pay dearly this Saturday when it faces Michigan. 8. 88% of Bush's support came from white voters. In 50 years, America will no longer have a white majority. Hey, 50 years isn't such a long time! If you're ten years old and reading this, your golden years will be truly golden and you will be well cared for in your old age. 9. Gays, thanks to the ballot measures passed on Tuesday, cannot get married in 11 new states. Thank God. Just think of all those wedding gifts we won't have to buy now. 10. Five more African Americans were elected as members of Congress, including the return of Cynthia McKinney of Georgia. It's always good to have more blacks in there fighting for us and doing the job our candidates can't. 11. The CEO of Coors was defeated for Senate in Colorado. Drink up! 12. Admit it: We like the Bush twins and we don't want them to go away. 13. At the state legislative level, Democrats picked up a net of at least 3 chambers in Tuesday's elections. Of the 98 partisan-controlled state legislative chambers (house/assembly and senate), Democrats went into the 2004 elections in control of 44 chambers, Republicans controlled 53 chambers, and 1 chamber was tied. After Tuesday, Democrats now control 47 chambers, Republicans control 49 chambers, 1 chamber is tied and 1 chamber (Montana House) is still undecided. 14. Bush is now a lame duck president. He will have no greater moment than the one he's having this week. It's all downhill for him from here on out -- and, more significantly, he's just not going to want to do all the hard work that will be expected of him. It'll be like everyone's last month in 12th grade -- you've already made it, so it's party time! Perhaps he'll treat the next four years like a permanent Friday, spending even more time at the ranch or in Kennebunkport. And why shouldn't he? He's already proved his point, avenged his father and kicked our ass. 15. Should Bush decide to show up to work and take this country down a very dark road, it is also just as likely that either of the following two scenarios will happen: a) Now that he doesn't ever need to pander to the Christian conservatives again to get elected, someone may whisper in his ear that he should spend these last four years building "a legacy" so that history will render a kinder verdict on him and thus he will not push for too aggressive a right-wing agenda; or b) He will become so cocky and arrogant -- and thus, reckless -- that he will commit a blunder of such major proportions that even his own party will have to remove him from office. 16. There are nearly 300 million Americans -- 200 million of them of voting age. We only lost by three and a half million! That's not a landslide -- it means we're almost there. Imagine losing by 20 million. If you had 58 yards to go before you reached the goal line and then you barreled down 55 of those yards, would you stop on the three yard line, pick up the ball and go home crying -- especially when you get to start the next down on the three yard line? Of course not! Buck up! Have hope! More sports analogies are coming!!! 17. Finally and most importantly, over 55 million Americans voted for the candidate dubbed "The #1 Liberal in the Senate." That's more than the total number of voters who voted for either Reagan, Bush I, Clinton or Gore. Again, more people voted for Kerry than Reagan. If the media are looking for a trend it should be this -- that so many Americans were, for the first time since Kennedy, willing to vote for an out-and-out liberal. The country has always been filled with evangelicals -- that is not news. What IS news is that so many people have shifted toward a Massachusetts liberal. In fact, that's BIG news. Which means, don't expect the mainstream media, the ones who brought you the Iraq War, to ever report the real truth about November 2, 2004. In fact, it's better that they don't. We'll need the element of surprise in 2008. Feeling better? I hope so. As my friend Mort wrote me yesterday, "My Romanian grandfather used to say to me, 'Remember, Morton, this is such a wonderful country -- it doesn't even need a president!'" But it needs us. Rest up, I'll write you again tomorrow. Yours, Michael Moore
Friday, November 05, 2004
I'm a slow thinker. So it's taken me three days to react to the election. But here it is.
The fact that 51% of the country voted for Bush means that 49% of the country voted for someone else. It means also that we are still a divided nation--but that should be obvious to anyone with an Internet connection or a television or a radio.
Being a divided nation is hurting us. The spirit of comprimise that makes Democracy so great has been replaced in our county by a spirit of using wedge issues to game an election and win by a slim majority. Then, once in power, to run the county without regard to the half of the county that disagrees. I don't blame this on Republicans (which may suprise my readers). I think that Democrats would do the same thing. Neither party is more partisan than the other. We need to move back to a spirit of comprimise. I don't mean bi-partianship, because the only things that both parties agree on are insipid little pieces of legislation ("January 14 - 21 is National Snowball Week!"). I mean that the Dems will get some of what they want, and the Republicans will get some of what they want. Republicans will get more this time around, because there are more of them. And when there are more Dems, they will get more of what they want. And so on. The Supreme Court needs to stand apart from the partisan crap, so that it can effectively be a voice of reason when the legislature or the Executive makes mistakes. And for this I look to the Republicans. Not because I think they are guilty for the current climate of American politics, but because they are in power. With power comes responsibility, and the Republicans have a responsibility to reach out to those of us who disagree with them. They need to show us that they are not worthy of our hatred--that they can make good governing decisions, play fair, and improve this country. I don't know if the Republicans are up to that task. I don't know if the Democrats would have been, either, but that's a moot point now. The second thing is the whole gay marriage issue. It is disheartening, to say the least, to know that voters went to the polls in droves to write discrimination into state constitutions across the land. (Here in Michigan the AFA has already called on the state government to make civil unions and domestic partner benefits illegal once the new ammendment passes on January 1. Check out The Lansing State Journal for details.) It hurts to know that, by just being mentioned on the ballot, we may have cost the Democrats the election. I feel like I'm the black sheep at a Democratic gathering--that people are looking at me and thinking "If you weren't here, we would be better off." Which is probably what most of the nation is feeling. And it hurts to know that much of middle America--our neighbors, families, and friends--will vote to spit in our faces rather than vote to save their own jobs. It's not easy to be Queer after the last election. And it's not easy not to take politics personally. That's all I have to say. For now, at least.
Loverly.
I know, I know... but it made me laugh.
[+/-] See it...
Thursday, November 04, 2004
Our Salvation! 
Wednesday, November 03, 2004
Two consolation prizes, and an "I told you so."
The consolation prizes
First, Proposal 2, which amends the Michigan State Constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, passed by a margin of only 59% to 41%. That is actually a lot closer than I would have thought, and while I'm sorry that my fellow citizens choose to vote for discrimination, at least they didn't do it by a gigantic margin. Second, John Kerry did take Michigan, so at least my immediate neighbors aren't [+/-] Now, for the painful part:I told you so. I called this election back in May, in favor of That Man, and I haven't wavered in that conviction, except for a faint ray of hope last night in the early moments of the coverage of the results, which was quickly crushed. But the truth still is this: That Man won re-election not because of his record, but in spite of it--because Americans choose to vote for the candidate they thought had the greatest "moral values." In other words, the votes went to the candidate who best represented Sheriff Taylor from The Andy Griffith Show. The candidate who is simple, common-sensical, loyal, and speaks in language that an 8th grader can understand. It doesn't hurt to have a southern accent, either. And that's what we like in our President. We want to feel comforted; we want to feel that our President is benevolent, wise, and level-headed. We want to be reassured that the biggest threat to our society is the ol' town drunk; but we want to be reassured that our man can maintain his composure when apprehending dangerous criminals as well. Sheriff Taylor makes us feel safe. He reminds us of a simpler time, when differences could be attributed to a misunderstanding, and any issue could be solved over a slice of peach pie. Sadly, America, we do not have such a President. Our current leader is an angry, contentious, rancorous, petty little man. And, like such men, he surrounds himself with others who make him feel powerful by isolating and insulating him from criticism. He wages his ideological wars in our hearts and our minds, dividing us against ourselves over issues of social justice and civil rights. Our current President appeals to a small majority, and takes that as a mandate to impose his narrow-minded ideals on a diverse population, without regard or concern to the effects of his actions. Our current President has lied to us again and again. His administration has also deceived us repeatedly over the past four years. When asked to explain his lies, he responds with more lies--this time telling us that he has always been honest and straightforward. Our current President considers himself his own final authority. He explains that he feels that God is on his side, and does not hesitate to characterize those who disagree with him as "evil." Sadly, our current President does not resemble Sheriff Taylor. However, he plays the part well on TV. And, in the realm of the American hearts and minds, that is enough. You don't actually have to be Sheriff Taylor in real life: You only need to play the part long enough before people will blur the line between who you are and who you claim you are. Maybe this is because Americans are frightened and seek reassurance. Maybe Americans don't care about elections, and just want to vote for the recognizable candidate. Maybe Americans are actually fooled by the act. It doesn't matter. What matters is this simple truth: People will vote for you based on who you appear to be, not based on what you have actually done. And that, my friends, is why That Man won the election. Our current President likes to end his addresses by saying, "God bless the United States of America." I will end my rant, perhaps a bit over-dramatically, by writing "God save the United States."
Tuesday, November 02, 2004
Three quick things...
The results are coming in...
Number 1 Everything is going down just as predicted on electoral-vote.com. (No, I'm not posting a link, because www.electoral-vote.com is down, and I am viewing the site through a mirror, and if I post the mirror then all my readers might cause that site to go down too. So I'm selfish.) Which is good for Kerry, as they predicted he would win. That would be nice. Number 2 Michigan's constitution will prohibit marriage between two people of the same gender, because my fellow citizens went to the polls and voted to ammend our state constitution by over a 2-to-1 margin. Everyone sing along with me: Oh! Canada... Number 3 You are a media whore, and I grow tired of seeing your face on TV. Go away. 
I voted, with the kind permission of the Republican Party.
I arrived at the polling place at 7:30, waited 90 minutes in line, and then voted. But it gets more interesting.
Michigan is a battle-ground state, meaning that the Republicans and the Democrats are trying really hard to get us to vote for their respective candidates. Often, this translates into supressing the vote for those likely to support the other guy. It's enough to make you want to give up on the whole "Democracy Thing." Here's what I mean: Ferndale, the city that I live in, is very liberal. (For example: Our mayor is openly gay; The number one recipient of campaign donations during the Democratic Primaries was Kuchinich; etc....) So, in order to make the numbers more favorable for That Man, the Republicans have posted someone in the polling places with a list of "disputed voters." The list is provided to them by the Republican party, by the way. This means that when someone whose name is on the Republican list arrives to vote, the Republican stooge stands up and says, "I challenge your vote," and then the potential voter has to swear that they are in the right polling place, and that they are who they claim to be, all the while the Republican stooge is reminding them that if they are not telling the truth they are guilty of perjury. For the most part, this man sat at the table with a sly grin on his face, looking at all the names of people as they arrived, and checking his list. It felt like we needed the permission of the Republican party to vote. It was eerie. And then the drama began. While I was waiting to vote, a woman wearing a fleece jacket with long hair arrived, and demanded to speak with the poll workers. She asked in the man if he was a resident of the district. He replied that he was not, and she cited the law requiring that people challenging votes must be "valid electors of the precinct," and then she called the police to have the At that moment I went into the booth and pulled the curtain, and when I came out the issue was still not resolved. As I left, a police car pulled up to the building. I don't know how the whole thing ended.
Monday, November 01, 2004
Not cool enough by half.
Jay and I have tossed around moving to Chicago before, and traveling there brought up the discussion again. Jay could transfer to the Chicago office, I could probably find a job pretty quickly... but there is one big problem with moving to Chicago: I'm not pretty enough or cool enough.
Seriously. All the boys in the Windy City are thin and pretty. I think I was the fattest man in the state during my visit. Additionaly, they are stylish and cool beyond reason. I get grumpy if I'm not in bed at 10:00, and sometimes I wear pleated pants. So Chicago is out, because it's too good for me. I'll slink off to my Michigan suburb now. |
