Okay. It's officially enough. We're on day 33 here in Dallas of temperatures above 100 degrees. And it's time to stop the madness. That sizzle you're hearing is me, frying gently in my own fat. Or maybe it's the pancake-colored "vegetation" in my yard. Are yards supposed to be crunchy? I digress.
I know, I know: I'm a Texan. I'm supposed to be used to our seasons, which by the way here are called Just Had Summer, About to Have Summer, Summer, and Face of the Sun. But this one's forging me, people. Last time I got cooked like this was the summer of 1998. Over 50 days with 100 degree weather. Hubs and I were childless, and living in a charming little Dallas honeymoon bungalow we couldn't cool under 80 degrees inside. I literally tin-foiled over the windows. Hubs took to watering the roof with a sprinkler. I was so hot, I believed, because I WAS IN HELL.
That summer thinned my blood. Thought I could take anything after the experience. But with the addition of three surly children to entertain this record-breaking summer, the heat-related Angst-O-Meter is pegging out. What a great summer to choose to work at home. The mini-van has become some kind of crock pot in which you can fry bacon or sear flank steak. Or children tenders. The kids and I always look vaguely like we've been dipped in marinade when we emerge.
And here's something fun to add to the mix: the air quality is so poor in Texas, we frequently have what the news cutely calls "ozone action days," which, loosely translated, means "pollution-levels-can-actually-poison-you days." The government around here is more interested in businesses making money than MY CHILDREN BREATHING, so few regulations regarding how much polluting corporations do. Hello, house arrest! And a vague feeling I'm starring in some low-rent version of Brazil. But again with the digression.
Texans, supposedly used to this heat, become even more surly and entitled as August sears its way through our collective conscious. Patience in traffic is at an all time low, and my county evidently will remain permanently under construction. Related: if you cut me off to run through a gas station parking lot to make a turn, I might have to drag you from your car and beat you. Oops. See what I mean about increased aggression with increased temperatures? Must stop the creeping madness.
Politics ain't helping us lower any negative effects from this brutal summer either. The vitriol over the debt ceiling debate I believe contributed to my local Planned Parenthood being Molotov cocktailed this week, speaking of hotheads. We as a nation face losing a third of the stock market if these children in Washington refuse to share and care. And I do believe I feel a little hotter typing that.
But I'm here to say, as hard as it can be to do: CHILL OUT. If I can keep from child abuse or a aggravated assault charge this summer, you can too. The Earth is, indeed, still turning on its axis. Preseason football is on the horizon. This political free-for-all will be just another footnote in some child's baby book under "Politics When You Were Born" shortly. Let's all concentrate on keeping our heads up and our minds cool. We're in this pressure cooker together, people. Make it so. Just Had Summer is almost here.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
The Key to World Peace. You're Welcome
Tense conversations between people starkly divided by values. An inability to agree on almost anything. Frustration, followed by walking out on important negotiations. Are we talking about the debt ceiling talks? No! We're talking about my trip to see family last week!
Yes, the trip brought all the drama, angst, and stress that was expected. I can't be too specific without being voted off the island, though, so I'll step carefully. You see, my traveling to my home state IS kind of like a bipartisan summit in that it brings together two branches of one family that could not be more diametrically opposed in ideology. Whether it be regarding social issues, political issues, religious issues...oh, hell, any issue...we're probably not going to agree on much (outside we pull for State or whoever's playing Ole Miss. But I digress).
Which is part of the stress of roadtripping. Visiting the state I grew up in is like traveling back in time to an alien orphanage I felt like I grew up in (did YOU ever look around in childhood and say to yourself, "I am clearly adopted."?). And there were moments where I, like Boehner, opted to walk out of the room rather than deal with the stress. But then, something inspiring happened.
My brother-in-law and sister-in-law, referred to from here as BIL and SIL, provided some hope for change. Now, these folks are fine Fox News-viewing folks just like the rest of the state. But here's something else they are: loving. Despite our differences, they provided an oasis from the stress of visiting (in the form, largely, of Def Jam comedy and liquor, but I again digress).
My point: BIL and SIL made it a point to find, discuss, and enjoy any similarity they had with us. We share taste in music and comedy as well as the very Southern love of Crown Royal sipped slowly on a porch. We all love our children fiercely and are fighting daily to shape them into something society can benefit from. We work hard for the money and to grow and improve ourselves. We value being authentic, productive, and of good character.
How do we make Democrats and Republicans into Americans? The same way the Lefty Counces and the Righty Counces come together to be the Counces: find the similarity. Be sensitive that people are so much more than their ideology. And realize: we have far more in common than that is different. We need to realize we're on the same team, show respect for differences, and be willing to be happy instead of right.
So I'm putting it on you! I'm declaring it Hug a Conservative week. Reach out across your aisle, so to speak. And I'm sending thanks to my BIL and SIL for acting more grown up than evidently we can count on Congress to do and making my twitchy liberal butt feel at home. Because I'm almost certain if Obama and Boehner sat down to some Def Jam comedy paired with a nice bourbon, we could iron something out.
Yes, the trip brought all the drama, angst, and stress that was expected. I can't be too specific without being voted off the island, though, so I'll step carefully. You see, my traveling to my home state IS kind of like a bipartisan summit in that it brings together two branches of one family that could not be more diametrically opposed in ideology. Whether it be regarding social issues, political issues, religious issues...oh, hell, any issue...we're probably not going to agree on much (outside we pull for State or whoever's playing Ole Miss. But I digress).
Which is part of the stress of roadtripping. Visiting the state I grew up in is like traveling back in time to an alien orphanage I felt like I grew up in (did YOU ever look around in childhood and say to yourself, "I am clearly adopted."?). And there were moments where I, like Boehner, opted to walk out of the room rather than deal with the stress. But then, something inspiring happened.
My brother-in-law and sister-in-law, referred to from here as BIL and SIL, provided some hope for change. Now, these folks are fine Fox News-viewing folks just like the rest of the state. But here's something else they are: loving. Despite our differences, they provided an oasis from the stress of visiting (in the form, largely, of Def Jam comedy and liquor, but I again digress).
My point: BIL and SIL made it a point to find, discuss, and enjoy any similarity they had with us. We share taste in music and comedy as well as the very Southern love of Crown Royal sipped slowly on a porch. We all love our children fiercely and are fighting daily to shape them into something society can benefit from. We work hard for the money and to grow and improve ourselves. We value being authentic, productive, and of good character.
How do we make Democrats and Republicans into Americans? The same way the Lefty Counces and the Righty Counces come together to be the Counces: find the similarity. Be sensitive that people are so much more than their ideology. And realize: we have far more in common than that is different. We need to realize we're on the same team, show respect for differences, and be willing to be happy instead of right.
So I'm putting it on you! I'm declaring it Hug a Conservative week. Reach out across your aisle, so to speak. And I'm sending thanks to my BIL and SIL for acting more grown up than evidently we can count on Congress to do and making my twitchy liberal butt feel at home. Because I'm almost certain if Obama and Boehner sat down to some Def Jam comedy paired with a nice bourbon, we could iron something out.
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