Sunday, November 27, 2005

 

how do you count 80,000 lives?

in addition to my high school reunion, i also saw the movie adaptation of rent this past weekend, which musically ponders the question of how we measure each year of our lives.

a year contains "525,600 minutes," each one full of unlimited potential and opportunity. 5 million minutes since high school. what a disconcerting way to think about about things. i wonder how many of those minutes have been memorable? how do we make each moment count without having to count every minute?

and then i hear on the radio that the death toll from the earthquake in pakistan is expected to rise past 80,000 people ... another number that at first seems too utterly immense to comprehend, but that quickly becomes painfully real once we stop to pay attention.

Saturday, November 26, 2005

 

should you ever go home again?

while i'm sure that there are many, many hollywood films that capture "the high school reunion" in all of its angst and glory, as i'm now sated with turkey and cranberries, and back home for my 10-year, i keep having visions of grosse pointe blank running through my head.

a few people i've stayed in touch with, some people i was very happy to see, and others just a bit curious about what's become of them. but of course, it's only the well-adjusted, happy-with-their-life people who show up (or the never-having-left-cleveland folks out of inertia) and not the john cusack all-black-wearing mafia hitmen, unless they're trying to reconnect with a minnie driver. i'm left with so many "whatever happened to..." questions that only friendster can solve...

alas, i have no 'minnie driver stories' of my own of which to speak, and no unrequited high school flames for whom i've pined over the last 10 years of my life. i came relatively well-adjusted, happy with my life, and leave the same. with no unrealistic expectations that i'm necessarily going to stay in close contact with the people i saw last night, or that i'm going to magically re-create less-than-ideal high school years.

there's only so many times that you can do the "remind-me-your-name, where-do-you-live, what-are-you-up-to-these-days" speed-date-like dance before laughing at the ridiculousness of it all, and yearning for deeper connections.

the challenge remains to enjoy things for what they are, continue to be present as best as i can for each unique moment, and continue to walk on my path, smiling with head held high.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

 

federal budget call-in!

from the chevra out in cyberspace... let's show those republicans that we're watching...

TELL CONGRESS:
We're Still Watching You and it's Still Wrong to Cut Vital Services and Give Tax Cuts to the Wealthiest

Knocked off balance last week by your calls and emails in support of human needs, budget cutters to try again this week to cut Health Care, Student Loans, Food Stamps and More!

Call your Representative toll-free at 800-426-8073 Wednesday and Thursday,
November 16-17.

Using this toll-free number (generously provided by the American Friends Service Committee) you can call the Capitol Switchboard and ask to be connected to your member of the U.S. House of Representatives (and if you're not sure who your member is, tell them, and they will identify your Representative and connect you). Once you're connected to someone at your Representative's office, tell them:

"My name is _______________ and I live in (your town/city). I would like Representative [name] to vote NO on the reconciliation bill to cut billions in services to vulnerable people, including Medicaid, student loans, food stamps, and other vital service. These cuts are the wrong priorities.

Vote against cuts that hurt the poor and sick and vote against more unfair, unwise, and unaffordable tax breaks for the well-heeled."

Monday, November 07, 2005

 

vote for santos!

tomorrow, on election day, cast your pretend ballots for matt santos. he obviously clobbered arnie vinick in the debate last night... wouldn't it be great to have him in the white house instead of you-know-who?