Ah, Humanity

I was reading over a couple of various news stories just now while the babies are napping and husband is at work. I like to scroll through the google news feed just to see what's happening in the world, to keep up with the big headlines without getting too bogged down in the horror that can be the daily news.

I read over a blog/news post about the tragedy of the young boy who died of dry drowning and was horrified by the comments section where people argued over petty grammar issues and I'm positive one poster varied his/her pseudonym several times to make snarky, irrelevent comments. Several people tried to point out how petty it was to post about a grammar error in such a tragic blog post, but the majority of the large mass of comments was snarky argument. Then I scrolled down and saw a NYTimes post about the 78 year old man who was hit by a car while people passed by and did not help him. Granted, it apparently was only a minute or so, and some four people did call 911, but the image of that man lying there for that long alone in the street like a dog is in my head now. Finally, peering in on the catfight (I can't really call it much else) for publicity about Spike Lee & Clint Eastwood at Cannes was bad enough but then reading, again, over the comments section where people are bitching about tiny petty things rather than actually debating anything serious, are jumping to personal attacks and stupidness.

I'm frankly a bit sad about the state of the Internet, and humanity, right this second. IN the face of horror and human pain we worry about what coin Abe Lincoln is on, what grammar is used to report a tragedy, what links are used for referencing an issue.

Now, I'm all for spellcheck, and I believe firmly in people learning intelligent debate. But the level of pettiness in these several different examples of behavior just bums me out.

To-Do List

I normally don't do "to do" lists. But I admire them when other people do them and magically check items off. So here is my current list:

• Laundry (eternally in progress)
• Networking computer issues (call Nerdgirl Computers)
• Work on articles: Anne Sexton, Zora Neale Hurston, Tarot rewrite
• Work on novel in progress (5,350 words right now)
• Clean house
• Read a book for fun
• Womenwriters website-- fiction editor--review proposals --draft proposal for publication --figure out listserv problem
• get pool water checked
• work out/ go to gym
• grocery shop
• go to lunch with K next week
• find someone to put together the fort
• propose Continuing Ed class
• clean house (didn’t I say that already?)
• feel guilty for not getting most of above done
• obsess over what the hell I'm leaving out. I know there's SOMEthing.

Parlez-Vous La Vache?

Early in my relationship with Andrew, he related a story to me about his Aunt. She was a feisty lady, who was a school teacher & goat rancher & one of those tall red headed ladies who speak with a drawl and epitomize "Texan."

A crazy peripheral relative (Andrew's former sister-in-law) who worked as an accountant at an oil company was asking the Rancher Aunt Geneva about her cows. It was a stereotypical Texan conversation, really-- the rancher talking to the oil company employee-- sounds like the setup for some kind of joke, really.

Anyhoo. Sister in law says: "But aren't those kinds of cow really stupid?" To which Aunt Geneva replied, "Well, Ah don't know, but Ah Taught mahn to speak French." (My rendering of the accent sucks but I want you to know... read this with that Texas drawl. Think that movie No Country For Old Men).

Andrew & I used to laugh about this, the idea that SOME cows were stupider than others. Don't get me wrong; I think it's quite likely that cows are very sweet animals. But they aren't the brightest animals on the food chain. And I can just hear the comeback. Sister in law was trying to act smart about something she just didn't know anything about, and ended up being the butt of one of those jokes. I wouldn't be relating this joke now if it weren't for the fact that crazy sister in law is being a bit of a butt, herself, and it's on my mind how annoying family can be. This way, I can think, instead, of the funnier moments rather than the irritating ones.

So the next time you're having a grilled something or other, you can wonder if this is a French-speaking steak. (Does that come off wrong? Oh, how could it really come off right is probably the better question.)

One More Minute

To sip the last dregs of my coffee before tickling babies awake. One more minute to read up on a blogger/writer I haven't been very faithful to--I stopped going by the blog even though I really like it because I don't know why; I'll analyze it later. One more minute to be amazed at how much better Eddie Van Halen looks on the cover of Rolling Stone that is sitting next to my computer (SOMEone bought me a subscription-- I actually don't know who) than he did in the last picture I saw (I know he had cancer and was sick so I am a terrible person but dude, he was out in public and he looked awful). Amazed at his stylist, who made him look less like a sick crack ho than he did before and actually kinda hot. One more minute to think about how happy I will be if the ENT appointment we have for Sean today reveals that yes, his speech delay is fluid in his ears and not "mild" autism and the same exact minute to worry about what we'll do if it is autism (love him anyway. work a bit harder.) One more minute to enjoy the cool air conditioning on the back of my wet hair, the stiff neck that is starting up from my reading at the laptop. One more minute to plan to get my sandals from downstairs, lotion from the front room, purse, keys, phone. One more minute before my very busy day starts......

Once More To The Lake

Every summer I have big big plans for things that I will accomplish, and then I see the days zoom past at lightspeed. It's not a complaint, really, but I just wonder, sometimes, how I used to accomplish so much!*

Anyway... we went to Canyon Lake this weekend. It was very very nice. Yes, there were hotrodders zooming past drunkenly on their jet skis but we are in a cove, sort of, so they rarely come too close. They just make waves, which the babies love anyway.

Maia loved the deer. They are over populated and inbred, and survive largely on deer corn, which is like humans living off of Big Macs alone. Yes, just that bad, but they love it. We mix a little barley & feed into the corn, but very few people do. We also feed the deer veggies-- usually, they eat that AFTER the corn is all gone. Maia would beg "More corn?" and toss one or two kernels at a time. One medium sized buck kept coming up stepping onto the porch. He swiped a piece of pizza off of my plate (I did NOT see that coming). Luckily for my conscience, at least it was Whole Foods apple & gorgonzola, so I have not turned the deer into a carnivore, (yet).

Babies cruised the shoreline with daddy in the kayak. Andrew is a bit of a "Great Santini" with grown ups about the kayak; I don't really enjoy going out with him. But he was sweet & nice with the babies and they really seemed to pick it up, swinging the very light oars in the proper sequence. Not that they really used them to push the kayak but they're 3!

We flew kites, which Maia loved to do, and she did quite well. Sean just wanted to hold the kite string and let it go... freedom! But the kites usually snagged on one of the scrubby wildflowers on the "beach" and so were rescued. He did it three times-- more me the stupid one for letting him sucker me again.

We had a pretty low stress drive, as well. Yes, it took hours (9 for the way there, about 7.5 on the way back-- fewer stops for playing). But otherwise, nice day, blue skies, babies eating pb&j in the back seat watching their DVDs and (mostly) happy.

Today, I have SOOOOO many errands to run and things to do. But I have the weekend and memories of relaxing, yes, relaxing to keep like a little jewel that I can take out and polish sometimes in the midst of all the tasks which will stay undone and things that will be checked off the list. Me, like a tall golem, mouthing "precious" and remembering how nice our teeny tiny vacation was.

And look at that face.... how much more precious can one baby be?


****************************************************************************

*(I do know-- the days used to be longer. I used to stay up 'til midnight, drinking a glass of wine and playing on the computer for hours hours while the husband watched basketball... now it's off to bed at 9, intending to get up later, but that never happens).