No posts as of late, it has been a bit busy, but for the most part... a good kind of busy.  Adam's parents came up for a visit and Aiden was able to spend time with his grandmother and granddaddy.  
He was happy as always...

School is almost out for the semester!
I might have some great news coming, stay tuned!
I promise I will have a real update soon.

Hating Someone Because They Believe Differently Than You : It is not always about teams....

People like teams, I've said it here before... either you are on my team and you are right, or you are on your team and you are wrong...
they can be aggressive, antagonistic, nasty...condescending, and hurtful over their team... and I am not talking about sports.


see where i am going here....

I dont get that... I never will.  I have one view, you have another and that is fine... I may not like it, I may not agree with it, but I don't think that if you disagree with me that you hate everything I stand for...thats childish, problematic, and it causes the horrible friction that I think as a society we suffer from.

Now if someone tells me something and it is factually wrong and I know that and have proof, I may try to talk about it, in a productive way... but im not mean about it, I dont see the point again...


we are humans, easily offended, nasty, snarky, prideful...but do we have to be hateful?  Is it always going to be about...this person disagrees with me so they must HATE me and I need to HATE them.

hate is a strong word.  I reserve that basest of all  irrational feelings for things like violence, racism, and stuff that warrants all out disgust.

Someone not having your same world view... is no reason to hate them or assume they hate you because they dont agree with you.

I try really hard to not be that person... I don't always succeed... but I cringe when I see someone being hateful towards another person simply for their world view without knowing anything about them, assuming, or just dogging them because they may not see things the same way you do...
it has led me down a colorful path... looking at people I instantly judge and trying to understand where they are coming from and at times it helps and at times, I fail...but I try, I really really do try and the more I try, the more it is upsetting when I see people resort to nasty, hateful, snark judgements of others just because they dont think the same way.

Hate is bad ok, just dont do it.

Bad Form

Attention: This is not a place to discuss government policy failures... please dont go there...that is not the point. 

I had the opportunity to visit New Orleans, LA. in 2005, a few months before the devastation of Katrina and it was a lovely and wonderful place...the trip changed me in many ways because it truly opened up my mind to travel in a way and I look upon that trip with a great deal of affection.  
In 2009, I went back to New Orleans, and while the French Quarter was still amazing, I had the opportunity to see the aftermath of Katrina, I saw the FEMA trailers and I saw the decay and it was heartbreaking becuase New Orleans is such a special place.

Now... lets move to the present for a moment.
I watch MSNBC and in the mornings, even though I spend half of my time tweeting Morning Joe in anger... I enjoy the show.  
Until... journalists are so shallow that they think it is acceptable to call the rollout of the ACA "Obama's Katrina."

Let me get one thing straight here...
This is not about the ACA, this is not about its problems...this is not about whether or not you are a fan of the president....this is about a horrific disaster....where people, mothers, brothers, children...DIED.

Don't trivialize that so you can have a catchy phrase when you discuss some failing government policy launch...
because people DIED.

A few days after Katrina we had a displaced family come into our store, they lost everything, they had a little girl, it was...so sad, it is still SO SAD...
and to diminish that suffering is irresponsible and bad form.

Really bad form.  

City v. Suburbs....

It is important I think to say up from when you are going to be bias about something and I am about to let by bias flag fly here.

I love the city.  Every time Adam and I have the opportunity to go to the city, we do.  I want to live in a city and while it is not for everyone, it is for me for a variety of reasons.  

I read an article today regarding the announced move of the Atlanta Braves to Cobb County, which is about ten minutes outside of Atlanta's city center.  I found the move saddening.  We should love our city... we should be proud that we have such a city in our state, we should do what we can to maintain and better our city...and I call it our city because it is, Atlanta is an amazing place and while a lot of people who don't live there like to dog it, they haven't experienced it I do not think...and that is their loss and unfortunate.

Atlanta has potential, with an expanded rail system it would have reach and more economic value, it is growing with that anyway with the Film Industry bringing in millions of dollars pretty consistently now because of its diverse surroundings...
Atlanta is cultural, it has so many amazing places like the High, the Zoo, it is a center for creative and unique music and art scenes and again... we should CATER to that.

The move by the Braves to a suburb that consistently has voted against connection with the city, voted against rail lines that would open up the area for more people, and against well...progress (look at their leading political figures)... is a slap in the face to Atlanta as a city and its people.

There is an elephant in the room and its called white flight, and its a big part of Cobb County's size...and it should NOT be celebrated, but discouraged.
When stadiums, businesses, and economic opportunity leave an area, poverty sets in, decline sets in...and things break down.  We can blame people, but when they cannot get access to jobs and opportunity, businesses....there is only so much they can do.

I visited Turner field earlier this year for a Braves game, it was a wonderful experience, the Stadium was lovely, we had no problems getting in and parking... we enjoyed ourselves and it being on the South side of Atlanta meant it was easier to get to from our house an hour and a half away...
I am disgusted by the idea that a Stadium like Turner Field is hundreds of millions of dollars in disrepair, that is simply... just not true.
I think more of the truth lies in the fact that the braves ownership is getting most of the new stadium paid for by Cobb County tax payers...in a time when money is tight and they refuse to spend taxes in their community, their schools, or extending MARTA, they will pay for a baseball stadium... nice Cobb, real nice...
Strangely enough any lucrative travel guide that talks about great places to eat, go, see, visit in and around Atlanta, doesn't mention much about Cobb County... I wonder why.  

Adam Hates Photos of Himself...

My husband does not like getting his picture taken.  So much that... any time we do take pictures we have to coax him to smile after he makes strange faces or just looks angry.

So we did family pictures, its a rare occasion... and...well, he had one request from the photographer after seeing a trash bin...

yea... he is special.

UGGGGG....

These last few weeks have not been the most wonderful of my academic career and I see the error that I made because I decided that I could handle with ease three classes and an infant.
This is not the case... handle maybe...with ease, laughable.

When I made anything close to a B, a low A, I get nervous...and my grades this semester are low As and high Bs and it is upsetting because I am doing everything I can...but staying focused, on task, and getting everything done is impossible and its very hard and upsetting.
I have to sequester myself off at night just to keep my head above water and its miserable.

I want this semester to end and have the ability to breathe.


I need a break, like Christmas.  

Then I just want a few days, in the mountains, quiet...away from everything...

so I need to also somehow win the lottery, because being broke will not let that happen either.

OK....
sorry this was a whine fest.
It wont happen again.