August 29, 2008

chills

I have been reading the transcript from Barack Obama's speech last night, and I am still getting chills from it. Let me share with you one of my favorite parts, because it truly gets to the heart of his campaign...

"...I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. They claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer, and more honest in our public life is just a Trojan horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values.

And that's to be expected, because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare voters.

If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big election about small things.

And you know what? It's worked before, because it feeds into the cynicism we all have about government. When Washington doesn't work, all its promises seem empty. If your hopes have been dashed again and again, then it's best to stop hoping and settle for what you already know.

I get it. I realize that I am not the likeliest candidate for this office. I don't fit the typical pedigree, and I haven't spent my career in the halls of Washington.

But I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the naysayers don't understand is that this election has never been about me; it's about you.

For 18 long months, you have stood up, one by one, and said, "Enough," to the politics of the past. You understand that, in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to try the same, old politics with the same, old players and expect a different result.

You have shown what history teaches us, that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn't come from Washington. Change comes to Washington.

Change happens -- change happens because the American people demand it, because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time."

You can see the rest of the speech here, and there's a good article about it here.

August 25, 2008

three of a kind...

...not! I couldn't believe it when I turned around and caught these 3 hanging out together a few weeks ago; this is a very rare occurrence. And it's nuts that they actually stayed put while I ran for my camera.

I think my cats keep me sane. Or, maybe that's not the best way to put it (considering that being a crazy cat lady is probably not viewed as the sanest way of life). I guess I mean that they help me keep things in perspective. I woke up the other morning laying on my stomach, and Lucy was asleep on my back-- so, I started the day with a smile, because who wouldn't smile knowing they had a cat on their back?

August 23, 2008

sunny thoughts


Too cute. I took 13 photos of these two little guys in an attempt to share them with you, and they never moved! :)

I'm trying to remind myself to think happy thoughts, as I take a short break from endless hours in my classroom (during which I tend to waste time chatting or procrastinating)...

August 19, 2008

my lovely familia

A kindly stranger took these photos of us after we climbed up onto the Lake Superior rock outcroppings... a silhouetted one and a close-up. :)

(We had a pizza/pop dinner watching the sunset!)

August 17, 2008

Lake Superior sunset

I have been neglecting my blog, because we were away in the Upper Peninsula for a week, and I've also been busy since we got home. Anyhow, I will soon have *many* photos to show you, but for now, I will leave you with this peaceful sunset pic. I took it on a roadside beach just south of Copper Harbor, and I think I want to print it and frame it! Ah, relaxing...

August 7, 2008

Michael Moore: not a hypocrite

It blew my mind after Mike's Film Festival Surprise when a girl asked Michael how he keeps from feeling like a hypocrite, especially after watching an hour of Mike doing a monologue on stage in London during which he continuously challenged the audience to think critically. The crowd at Lars Hockstead Auditorium in Traverse City inadvertently defended Michael as movie-goers thanked him for everything he's done locally and nationally. Michael, however, answered the girl's question in his reliably humble manner. He said that yes, they have a nice house and send their daughter to a good school, because they are able to, but they also continue to do what they can with what they have. In another after-movie Q&A, Michael and other filmmakers discussed the notion of guilt, and they basically encouraged people not to feel guilty for being one of the "haves" in a world of "have-nots". In fact, the "haves" are the lucky ones, not just because we have wealth or health care or material goods, but because we are able to do something to make the world a better place. (Please keep in mind that Michael also sent a check to the government in the amount of his Bush tax cut that profited the wealthy and left us little guys behind. He is doing what he can to avoid any level of hypocrisy.)

Michael also pointed out the fact that his successes have been lucky-- whether or not he profited off of his books/movies/etc., he would have done what needed to be done. In one of Mike's books, he talks about how he is actually quite introverted and gets really nervous about confrontation. But he does it, time and time again, because he feels so passionately about opening up our eyes to this harsh reality in which we live. We live in a society afraid to talk about difficult things-- politics, government, inequalities. And until we can start opening up about these things, we need people like Michael Moore, who are willing to take on the task. It's almost like we live in a dreamworld of preferred ignorance because then we don't have to give a damn.

August 6, 2008

las floras en mi jardin



The garden is making me happy! Flowers, flowers, everywhere...

in my pumpkin patch,
on my tomato plants,
and in the cucumber lair...

Flowers, flowers, everywhere.

August 3, 2008

moment of glory story


Bryce ran into Kathleen Glynn (Michael Moore's brilliant wife) downtown last week, and she asked him, "Is there another Erin Kennedy around?" Bryce said he didn't think so, and she said, "Well, I think I saw your wife in the Northern Express!"

That was how Bryce discovered that a photo from our PURE Procession made it into a weekly progressive paper. And I was absolutely THRILLED that Kathleen remembered my name! :)




p.s. you can only see a bit of my head in the photo-- I am the 5th dancer in line.