Author: gkennedy2171

It’s a, It’s a, It’s a …….Something!

Laughter is good for the soul and never more so than now in the strange and frightening political climate that seems to be engulfing not only America but also the World. Scary stuff going on out there and I find myself turning to comedy shows seeking relief from the awful depression and sorrow that seems to be trying to smother me these days.

So it was with great anticipation and happiness that I climbed aboard a plane headed for Nashville a couple of weekends ago to connect with both my daughters and my oldest granddaughter for a weekend get away that encompassed food, fun, camaraderie and some really fine music. Four people spanning the breadth of the United States to converge for a fun-filled weekend in one of the great country music cities in the world.

It wasn’t all play…My granddaughter is considering Vanderbilt University to pursue a career as a nurse practitioner. Two times a year, the nursing program hosts an open house designed to present the very best of Vanderbilt’s Nursing Program to lure potential students. Because I am a nurse, I was my granddaughter’s chosen guest for this event and she was hopeful that I would have insight into the quality of Vanderbilt’s nurse practitioner program. And I was impressed. They have all the bells and whistles, all the tools and learning environments that build excellent nurses. Everything from global study programs to a first-rate simulation lab stocked with fake peeps (AKA mannequins) that breathe, talk, bleed and can be programmed for different scenarios for practice which builds great nursing experience in a safe setting.

This granddaughter has the heart and soul of a nurse. A passion for people, a desire to comfort and help, a selfless need to serve. And I think she also thrives on the adrenaline rush of working in a hospital setting. I am proud of her for exploring the many avenues open to her, for her journey to find and live her passion whether she completes this journey or not. She fears not and is living her life to the fullest each and every day. I was honored that I was her chosen guest for this event.

But that was a daytime activity. Our nights, each of the three, were spent at different music venues. The Listening room was our Friday night spot. Four singer/songwriters taking turns to sing their own songs, some of which have been recorded by well-known artists. It was a delightful evening and left us anxiously looking forward to the next evening at the Grand Old Opry…an institution that pays tribute to the founding roots of country music. I probably enjoyed this one the least simply because it was so commercialized (actually radio commercials because it was being broadcast at the time). It did make me appreciate the many country western artists who built this genre of music into what it is today.

Our last night was the best for me. But the price was pretty steep…not in money but in time. We arrived at the Bluebird Cafe at 4PM to wait in line for seats for the 8PM performance. Never in my life have I done this, but this time I was so grateful that I did. Our wait rewarded us with front table seats to enjoy three hours of music free of charge from 9 different singer/songwriters. We ate, we enjoyed some libations and our hearts were soaring with the beautiful original songs that filled the little Bluebird Cafe on that Sunday night. It was magical.

A little sightseeing, a walk across the Pedestrian Bridge, photos of iconic memorials and topped off with some good birding and a visit from …….It’s a, It’s a, It’s a something? spotted outside our AirB&B condo and a life list first for me in the mammal family. I couldn’t find my words when I first saw Mr. Groundhog and thus the title of this piece. My beautiful granddaughter laughed hysterically at my difficulty in finding the right name of our furry friend. I don’t usually suffer from this malady.

I wish for each of you happy laughter with people you love! A sure cure for the sickness of our political climate right now.

 

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Wake Up America!

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If you are a Democrat, Progressive, Independent or Liberal your world is reeling right now. So just what does being one of “those” mean to me? It means I care about my fellow humans. It means  I acknowledge they have the same rights that I have…rights afforded to us by our Constitution. It means if I see an injustice in progress, I will voice an objection. It means I believe that everyone should be entitled to a decent wage for services rendered. It means  I believe women and men doing the same job should be equal on the pay scale. It means I value our environment. It means  I acknowledge climate change.  It means  women’s rights are human rights. It means  I believe  healthcare is a right not a privilege for the rich. It means I believe that public schools are a good and necessary thing. It means I am a patriot. It means I am an American first and this means more to me than a party name.

In a perfect world, everyone would take care of their neighbors or people in need. Unfortunately, the world is not filled with altruistic people. It also contains self-centered people, individuals driven by greed, individuals who live by the philosophy of “every man for himself”. The mindset of these people makes it necessary for there to be laws that enforce protections for the weak or vulnerable among us. It would be a perfect world if every state would do its part, but unfortunately, once again, this doesn’t always happen. For years, Jim Crow laws in the South have suppressed the African-American vote. And even when it wasn’t a law, there existed an undercurrent of “that’s just the way it is done”.

I vividly remember as a child seeing different restrooms for white and “colored”, different water fountains labeled white and colored and when riding a public transportation bus, the accepted norm in the South was that blacks sat in the back of the bus. As a 5-year-old I recognized the unfairness of these Southern social norms. I was fortunate enough to have been raised by parents that weren’t racist..a Mother from North Dakota and a Father from deep in the heart of Alabama. I witnessed my Father getting phone calls in the middle of the night from his African-American truck drivers who had some problem. My Father got in the car and went to help them, to fix the problem, because back then a white man carried more weight than a black man, a white man could fix the problem, and a black man was the “problem” in a white controlled southern environment. From my birth I had a beautiful, loving, kind, gentle black woman who nurtured and cared for me as if I was her own. Daisy was my second Mom. I saw the inconsistencies of those Southern norms… when my Mother was at work and Daisy cared for me in our home, she used the same bathroom we did. Yet when Daisy walked me to the grocery store I saw the signs designating different restrooms for white and colored. At our home, Daisy drank from the same glasses we used, sat at our table and ate lunch with me. She fiercely defended me by chasing a neighborhood friend away with a broom when he tossed a rope around my neck. She loved me and I loved her. And yet outside the walls of our home, she was treated differently, like a second class citizen. As young as I was, I sensed the wrongness of all of this. Only as an adult after reading The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson, did I come to realize all of the horrible things that blacks endured which had never crossed my mind. It never occured to me because I was white, blue-eyed, blond hair.  Because of these simple physical characteristics endowed to me by the luck of my birth, I never had to endure what blacks had to endure. And when I saw the movie The Help, I sobbed my way through the entire movie. I felt shame. Shame that I inherited just because of the whiteness of my skin. It burned me and left its mark upon my soul.

How was this inequity fixed? The Civil Rights movement of the 60’s and the phenomenal efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King and President Lyndon B. Johnson, made these changes come to fruition. With the Civil Rights Act, some of the inequities began to slowly but surely be removed. But not completely. Southern states and polecat politicians created new Jim Crow laws in attempts to suppress the black voter. Jim Crow was disguised as poll taxes, redistricting, limited voting sites, gerrymandering, changing polling locations and ID laws, all popular methods of suppressing minority voters. A simple solution to eliminate these problems…when you are born you are automatically registered to vote. A simple concept and it eliminates controversy. If you are born here then you simply get to vote.

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Change doesn’t happen quickly. It can be painful and it takes patience and tenacity to make it happen. Generations of feet marching, beaten, bloodied bodies and too many senseless deaths have paved that long road to equality.

The federal government has to be the watchdog over the states because unfortunately not all states promote equality. I find it very interesting that the Conservative movement of the Republican Party spouts constitutionality and shouts individual rights, but when it comes time for common sense, they fall way short. The recent elimination of a ban on mentally ill being able to purchase guns is a prime example. Paid for and supported by the NRA, the politicians who are just looking for a paycheck, accept donations from this organization and basically are participating in a “pay for play” agreement. It matters not that it makes absolutely no sense to allow mentally ill people the right to purchase guns. Another example is their fierce obsession with pro-life issues. They rant and rave about the rights of the unborn, but when it comes to funding programs for these children after they are born…they simply vanish into the woodwork. Example… eliminating free lunch programs for children of the poor who might be receiving the only meal they will have for the entire day. Where are the Conservatives and caring people who tout individual rights when these protections are non-existent or eliminated? If Conservatives truly cared, then they would fiercely defend those children after they are born with the  same fervor they exhibited when that child was in utero.

I have never been so ashamed of my country as I am today in this political climate. Truth and veracity are being tossed aside, hope is being squashed, and constitutional rights are being trampled. First the Muslim ban was invoked. Then the undocumented were targeted…Transgenders were next on the list. Freedom of the press is being pummeled now. Who or what will be next? Keep a list and tick them off, because what you are witnessing in the United States of America today is, in Steve Bannon’s cruel and sinister words, the “deconstruction” of the United States as we have known it for 240 years. He and his minions have chosen Cabinet members precisely because they are opposed to those government branches. The goal…to bring it all down. When will you reach your moment, your “I’ve had enough this isn’t fair and I can’t live with myself if I support this annihilation of my country moment?” I long ago passed my “moment”. My heart aches. Not over losing an election but for the loss of a beautiful thing…The United States of America.

Resist! Persist!

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Winter Birding

I mentioned previously about taking a sparrow class in an attempt to demystify some of the little brown birds that all seem to look alike. Our instructor, Dr. Birdie, has great knowledge about these members of the bird world and did a great job of imparting his knowledge to us. We would meet Wednesday nights  to discuss and view different sparrows common to the Austin area, learning their markings, differences,  and preferred habitats and haunts. The field notes provided were used by me to sketch and paint the different birds in my attempt to help my brain remember some of those characteristics.

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On Saturdays, we had our field trips to different popular birding areas in the Austin area to try to actually locate and get up close and personal with some of the birds we studied. Some of the ones we were chasing were obvious…black throated sparrow, rufous crowned sparrow but others are so similar that I am still having difficulty determining the accuracy of my sightings without Dr. Birdie there to help guide me through the identification process.

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Rufous-crowned Sparrow

Small birds move quickly, darting in and out throughout grasses, bushes and shrubs. This rapid movement makes it challenging for my identification skills. We trudged our way through waist-high grasses and tried to surround one La Conte Sparrow for at least 30 minutes. In the end the sparrow won, flying easily away each time we though we had cornered him leaving behind some very tired and frustrated bird searchers. Did I see the bird…yes. Could I identify him again if he sat still long enough for me to study his markings…perhaps. The only thing I “caught” for sure on that particular day were some chiggers.

I have learned over the past few years that improving my bird identification skills is a long-range process. And slowly but surely, I am getting better. But at the rate I am progressing, I will probably expire before I become a super expert. That really doesn’t bother me though because I still get excited with each bird I see, my eyes constantly scanning my surroundings just in case something new and different or old, tried and true appears within my scope of vision. You see, it is the thrill of the hunt, the excitement of the sighting and the satisfaction of making the identification that bring an immeasurable amount of  joy into my life.

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Debris on the banks of Lake Somerville

Happy winter bird searching!

 

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Nest Architecture

In the Springtime, Mother Nature signals all her bird species to begin the long process of building a family. A family needs a place to live and grow, and the nests of different bird species differ as much as the birds who build them. Some are meticulously woven and others are just a shallow hollowed space in the dirt or mud. Some are colonial nesters and others are solitary. The various materials used differ by species as well, with some bird species having a particular fondness for certain nest-building materials.

As the young birds grow, the nest takes a beating. Throughout the whole process, many bird species will continue bringing in twigs, sticks, moss to repair and reinforce the basic nest structure if need be. And after the young birds have fledged and the nest is abandoned, it may fall into complete disarray and remain that way until the following Spring when the parents may return and “remodel and update” as they begin the procreation cycle again. Or, another bird species may decide that what remains is a fine home and may move in to raise their brood.

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Cavity Dwellers
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Oriole Nest

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Pileated Woodpecker Home

 

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Carolina Wren Nest
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Baby Eagles

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Juvenile Osprey

Whatever the building materials, wherever it may be located, Spring is just around the corner as evidenced by bluebonnets dotting our highways, redbud trees bursting into bloom and the light green tinge on many trees signaling that the sap is running, time is of the essence and a new cycle of life has begun. Birds are feverishly seeking mates, selecting a nest site, gathering nesting materials as the race is on to have a home for their offspring. Everybody needs a home.

Happy bird searching!!!

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Новый образ жизни-A New Way of Life

So, I am attempting to adjust to a new America and I am equating it to taking my medicine. I don’t particularly like it, but it is a necessary evil. Like medicine, I can only manage it if the dose is  small. To that end, I am trying to force myself to watch at least 15 minutes each day of Fox (Fantasy) News in an attempt to gain insight into the Orwellian alternative world of alternative facts. I think that this may be beneficial to me in maintaining my sanity and retaining my grip on reality and true facts.

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I have also decided to increase my alcohol content each day with a shot of vodka. I think that in the near future imbibing in the national drink of Russia may help me to blend into the new America/Russia alliance. If nothing else, it will ease the pain of the birthing process of our combined nationalism and assimilation.

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And thirdly, I also think that a handy survival skill will be knowing how to speak Russian. So to that end, I have begun to learn a new Russian phrase each week, a phrase that may help me survive in the new world. Is it easy? Het! (See I have already begun!)

Bozhe, khrani ameriku

I still remain hopeful, that saner minds will put country before party and remove someone who has demonstrated that he is incapable of leading our country and keeping us safe. One has only to listen or read the entire transcript of his latest “press conference” to see  clear irrefutable  evidence of his illiteracy and incompetence. Heil President tRump…I mean Bannon….oops Putin. So confusing right now! I think I need more vodka!!!

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Torn, battered, but still waving!

 

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Can A Teddy Bear Tear Down A Wall?

Today I bought a $10 teddy bear that I spotted when I walked into the grocery store. There was a huge display of them, all sizes, displayed to entice shoppers into purchasing one for a Valentine’s Day gift. Don’t ask me why I bought one but buy one I did. Later I found myself examining why I bought that silly stuffed bear. And then it dawned on me. The moment I spotted that bear I felt a part of me begin to dissolve. The bear was my key to acceptance. Accepting I must have faith that eventually right will conquer wrong.

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Why you ask? What is so special about a stuffed bear and how in the world could such an object affect me so? The answer?…..my best friend has a huge stuffed bear that she literally hauls everywhere she goes. That stupid grocery store bear began hammering at my wall that has strained my relationship with both her and my very own sister in the present political climate. I will continue my fight for those who can’t, but allowing my angst, depression and frustration about the fate of our nation cannot cleave my best friend, my soul sister or my blood sister out of my life. That stupid grocery store bear began hammering at my wall to join my soul sister’s bear where two hearts can once again be joined as one.
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I will continue to walk in protest, mail postcards to politicians, call, email, fax and tweet when I feel they are in violation of civil rights, in violation of our Constitution and generally lacking in morals and ethics. I am one small cog in the wheel of America but one small act of peaceful protest each day helps me to survive. But once my wall is down, I hope to bring some light and joy back into my life by continuing my fight as a patriot but removing my battle armaments and setting them aside whenever I am enjoying time with my besties, the people I love.
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I find it ironic that 45 rose to the Presidency with a battle cry of “Build the Wall”, because on the campaign trail he built many walls across our nation. Walls between husbands and wives, friends and neighbors, sisters, brothers, mothers and fathers. This has happened only one other time in our nation’s history…The Civil War. Then as now, our Constitution and our Democracy was and is being challenged. Our democracy is a beautiful system with three different branches of government creating checks and balances that have insured our democracy’s survival for 240 years.  I must trust that our forefathers created a living document that will be strong enough to endure.
Now my new bear and I have to get busy. It is hard work tearing down a wall.
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What is Your Tipping Point?

 

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When is it enough? When will Trump supporters say this is too much? When will they realize that their rights as citizens are being violated and slowly but surely eroded? When will they recognize that their world is changing in ways they may not like.

Will it be :

  • When the Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipelines are built across sacred tribal Native American land?
  • When he bans immigrants from Middle East countries but conveniently exempts those nations where Trump has financial interests?
  • When the VA is banned from hiring needed personnel to fix its problems?
  • When our National Parks are ravaged for corporate profit?
  • When all media access is lost? Our internet controlled?
  • When a gag order is placed on scientists who give us information on global warning?
  • When the Arts are defunded and Big Bird is dead?
  • When the President builds his own wealth by violating the Constitution?
  • When the largest source of women’s health care is defunded?
  • When women are dying from coat hanger abortions?
  • When the cost of a basic automobile is far out of reach for the average person?
  • When the EPA is silenced?
  • When real data and statistical proof of global warming disappears?
  • When alternative facts, AKA lies, are accepted as the truth?
  • When your right to vote is suppressed?
  • When your right to protest is gone?
  • When you lose your Medicare benefits?
  • When you are told that you have a pre-existing condition and it is not covered by insurance?
  • When the cancer drug you need to save your life is not covered by your insurance or you lose your home to pay for your life saving medications?
  • When they see a video that offends them?
  • When they hear words that offend them?
  • When your religion is attacked?
  • When your parents are deported or put into internment camps?
  • When you see your parent lose Medicare benefits?
  • When clean air and clean water are no longer a priority?
  • When your tax dollars go to pay for the “wall”?
  • When Meals on Wheels is eliminated for Seniors?
  • When evidence is produced that proves are government has been infiltrated by Russian sympathizers?
  • When it affects you?

Warning Bells are Loudly Clanging. Are Trump supporters listening yet?

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To the People I Love

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I have been having a hard time with the political firestorm, so basically feel like it is best to get my feelings and thoughts out. It breaks my heart to hear people I love rationalize what Donald Trump stands for and normalizing or making excuses for his abusive words and actions. I also think that telling me or others to “just get over it” or “it’s time to move on” is harmful to a relationship. Just as each of us must grieve a loss in our own time frame, please recognize that all of the people who didn’t vote for Trump (Democrats, Independents and many Republicans) are grieving what we see as the death of democracy as we know it. 

I love you all soooo much and care deeply for many people in my life who made the choice to select Trump as their President. I never once thought any of you were “deplorables” and truly believe that you voted for the person you believed would be best for our nation. I know you have seen my many posts and the fact that I still cannot accept him as “My President” and probably never will. I now feel like there is a wall between us because I can’t understand supporting this man. This is not like me at all. This is the first time in my life that I have felt so negatively about the winner of our Presidential race. And my chosen candidates have lost in the past. This is the first time in my life that I have feared for America and the democracy it represents to the world. This is the first time in my life that I find myself banging against a wall that looms between me and people I love. After the election I had hopes that he would become more presidential, but as each day passes, I am more alarmed at his unpresidential behavior. I am having great difficulty understanding how people I love see him as a great leader, the answer to all of our problems. To me, he is uneducated, inarticulate, has a scattered unfocused thought process and seems to be only interested in his own self rather than stepping up to the plate to be President for over 300 million Americans. Many of us did not vote for him and I have seen no movement on his part to try to allay our fears about his inability to govern in a responsible way, no reaching out across our nation to reassure his non-supporters that it will be okay. So just as you believed he would be the best choice, I believe that he is absolutely the worst person to lead our nation.

As I watch the Republican Congress make moves to dismantle health care for over 20 million people, one of which is my granddaughter who was born with a pre-existing condition, I am appalled that they think this is the right thing to do. And now I have two pre-existing conditions as well. They have had six years to come up with a better plan and for six years have presented no viable alternative.  I think all of us agree that the ACA is not perfect, but fix it! Or replace it simultaneously with a plan that doesn’t strip the rights of 20 million Americans  to health care. Please follow this link to read about how people with employer covered insurance will also be affected by its repeal.  http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2017/01/11/get-health-insurance-through-your-employer-aca-repeal-will-affect-you-too/    

His refusal to take daily intelligence briefings while President elect, his attack of the intelligence agencies in our country, his lack of veracity makes me fear for the safety of our nation. I pray daily that he will not start a nuclear war. 

Paul Ryan has had an agenda for years to privatize Medicare and Social Security. He is quite determined to do this. Repealing ACA DOES affect Medicare benefits as well. Cancer and diabetes screenings gone. Recommended preventive services without cost sharing through employers will be gone…so mammograms, flu shots, etc. I am pleading with you and others to please investigate and study ALL of the issues.

Pence is hell bound to get rid of Planned Parenthood and believes that we can use conversion therapy to “cure” being gay. Planned Parenthood cannot by law use federal funds for abortions and abortions are only a very small part of services offered through this organization. They provide mammograms, pap smears, pre-natal care, birth control options and many other preventive health care services for millions of low-income women. I don’t want us to go back to back alley abortions with coat hangers. Real people are affected by this. I also feel strongly that no man or governing entity should have the right to make decisions about my body. I have spent many years in maternal health care and never participated in any abortion procedures because personally I am Pro-Life. But, I will fiercely defend anyone else’s right to make that choice. I have NO right to dictate to someone else what they feel they must do. Their body, their life. That makes me Pro-Choice.  I also wonder why it matters so much to other humans that everyone needs to be the same? Diversity is what has made this nation great. Isn’t it enough to just take care of your own life?

My bottom line though is that I think he is a despicable human being, a homophobic, xenophobic, racist, narcissistic lying sexual predator who wants only to increase his own wealth on the backs of hard-working American citizens. I can’t erase the image of him mocking a handicapped journalist nor can I erase hearing the words he uttered while boasting of being a sexual predator. If he truly cared about being “presidential” and wanted to alleviate the fears that he has sown throughout the past 1.5 years, then release his tax returns, put his holdings into a true blind trust. At least make an effort to show me and millions of Americans that he is worthy of the job. I also ask Trump supporters this question….If any other Republican or Democrat running for the office of the Presidency did just half of the things Donald Trump did and said, would those who so fiercely support him, have given them a pass as well on any of the above outrageous words and actions? 

Sorry, but I have to go dark. I just cannot assimilate how to resolve the emotions within me. I am desperately trying to figure out how I can dismantle the wall that I feel exists between me and the people I love whose beliefs are so far from my own. I absolutely recognize that resolving this crisis in my life is definitively my problem. I am hopeful that I will be able to shatter that wall, but not sure how long that might take.  And Trump could facilitate this process if he would begin to adhere to his campaign promises of “not touching Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security” or giving us “healthcare for all” which should be a right for every citizen, not an option based on personal wealth. Sadly though, all I am seeing so far is implementation of executive orders allowing our environment to be raped for oil profits, anti-abortion acts being reinstated, and tax cuts for the wealthy.

Above all, I am an American. I love my country. Above all, I am a patriot, not a Democrat, Republican or Independent. As a patriot, I am doing what I believe in my heart is the right thing to do….Resist any attempt to normalize unacceptable behavior, resist any attempt to ignore the Constitution, resist any attempt to stifle freedom of speech, resist racism, resist homophobia, resist misogyny and xenophobia, resist any and all things that threaten the freedoms that so many have shed blood to protect and defend.

Millions of Americans are grieving right now. I think Lady Liberty is grieving as well.

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