We did it! And by an amazing landslide.
We turned Congress blue too. The president will need to work with Congress to get things done. They're supposed to be partners in running the country.
I also appreciated the sober tone he took in his acceptance speech. He is taking on huge, huge, huge responsibilities with 2 wars and a global recession, and everyone domestically and internationally will want a piece of him.
And I worry about the haters and the possibility of assassination attempts. That would be such an absolute tragedy and throw us all into more trouble.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Election day wishes
Today is a historic election day in the USA. I did early voting and stood in line for three hours.
Last week, I heard Naomi Tutu speak at the Atlanta Women's Foundation luncheon and she said that she and many others stood in line for days to vote in South Africa's first election. So waiting a few hours is nothing to complain about.
I voted for Obama because I am a community organizer. I am concerned about the growing divide between rich and poor. I am concerned about what the US has done to the world and our standing in the world.
I voted for Obama because I want a leader who will bring people together and understand what the view looks like from the bottom. I want a leader who's thoughtful and a bridge builder. I want a leader who will make room for voices and people who have been shut out or vilified. I want a leader who leads from a place of hope, not fear.
It's an absolutely historic election. It makes me so proud to be an American that our country has come so far that some one who is not white has the chance to become president! We still have far to go but it gives me so much hope.
So here are my wishes for this election day, which I posted on a friend's blog who is volunteering as a pollworker today:
May every single registered voter come out to vote.
May there be no problems with the machines or ballots.
May every vote be counted.
May the electoral college hear our voices.
May we have Obama for president!
May we have a new country!
And don't forget the other races. The president is not a dictator, but balanced by Congress and the Courts. And our everyday lives are impacted much more by the local races.
But still, it's a historic election and an important election because of the wars and economy, so get out and vote!
Last week, I heard Naomi Tutu speak at the Atlanta Women's Foundation luncheon and she said that she and many others stood in line for days to vote in South Africa's first election. So waiting a few hours is nothing to complain about.
I voted for Obama because I am a community organizer. I am concerned about the growing divide between rich and poor. I am concerned about what the US has done to the world and our standing in the world.
I voted for Obama because I want a leader who will bring people together and understand what the view looks like from the bottom. I want a leader who's thoughtful and a bridge builder. I want a leader who will make room for voices and people who have been shut out or vilified. I want a leader who leads from a place of hope, not fear.
It's an absolutely historic election. It makes me so proud to be an American that our country has come so far that some one who is not white has the chance to become president! We still have far to go but it gives me so much hope.
So here are my wishes for this election day, which I posted on a friend's blog who is volunteering as a pollworker today:
May every single registered voter come out to vote.
May there be no problems with the machines or ballots.
May every vote be counted.
May the electoral college hear our voices.
May we have Obama for president!
May we have a new country!
And don't forget the other races. The president is not a dictator, but balanced by Congress and the Courts. And our everyday lives are impacted much more by the local races.
But still, it's a historic election and an important election because of the wars and economy, so get out and vote!
Monday, November 3, 2008
Made a bid
Over the weekend, Husband and I went to look at condos in downtown Atlanta and this morning he put in an offer for a condo on the 23rd floor in Museum Tower, overlooking Centennial Olympic Park, the World of Coca-Cola, and the Georgia Aquarium.
So. Excited.
Because of the down economy, the asking price is ridiculously low. I mean, in good times, the asking price would have been at least half a million dollars if not more (totally guessing here). But now it's nowhere near that amount.
Now we wait to see what the sellers say. And no more new trips for us, not even to Wisconsin for Christmas and especially not to Taiwan for Chinese New Year.
So. Excited.
Because of the down economy, the asking price is ridiculously low. I mean, in good times, the asking price would have been at least half a million dollars if not more (totally guessing here). But now it's nowhere near that amount.
Now we wait to see what the sellers say. And no more new trips for us, not even to Wisconsin for Christmas and especially not to Taiwan for Chinese New Year.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
9 years, but really 17
Today Husband and I will celebrate 9 years of marriage with dinner at French American Brasserie. It's located next to a condo in downtown Atlanta that we've considered moving to. This will give us a chance to see what the neighborhood is like at night.In reality, we have been together 17.5 years, having met May 1991 and been an exclusive relationship since then. I certainly celebrate the May anniversary and in someways it means more to me. I count myself incredibly lucky to have found such a wonderful mate so early in life (I was 20 years old, almost 21. He was 21 already.) and to have such a great relationship together ever since.
So we have an anniversary to celebrate every 6 months!
ETA: When we ordered dessert at dinner, they wrote a little note for us on the rim. The dessert was good too, as you can see from the fact that we didn't notice the Happy Anniversary until after we finished off the chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream. At least we did notice the lit candle in the ice cream.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Wicked!
Just saw Wicked. I read the book a long time ago because I liked the idea of reading the story of Oz from the Wicked Witch's point of view.
The book was kind of a slog and I liked the concept better than the book.
The play was just great. It focused on the relationship between Glinda (the Good Witch) and Elphaba (the Wicked Witch). The costumes were interesting and the stage setting was pretty minimal. The songs were alright. It's not catchy like Cats or Les Miz, but they weren't bad.
I'm tempted to reread the book, to skim it, for comparison.
And to go to more plays.
On a completely different topic, I took this test and my tarot card is
I would not have guessed. It took it again and told me this:
The book was kind of a slog and I liked the concept better than the book.
The play was just great. It focused on the relationship between Glinda (the Good Witch) and Elphaba (the Wicked Witch). The costumes were interesting and the stage setting was pretty minimal. The songs were alright. It's not catchy like Cats or Les Miz, but they weren't bad.
I'm tempted to reread the book, to skim it, for comparison.
And to go to more plays.
On a completely different topic, I took this test and my tarot card is
You are The Tower
Ambition, fighting, war, courage. Destruction, danger, fall, ruin.
The Tower represents war, destruction, but also spiritual renewal. Plans are disrupted. Your views and ideas will change as a result.
The Tower is a card about war, a war between the structures of lies and the lightning flash of truth. The Tower stands for "false concepts and institutions that we take for real." You have been shaken up; blinded by a shocking revelation. It sometimes takes that to see a truth that one refuses to see. Or to bring down beliefs that are so well constructed. What's most important to remember is that the tearing down of this structure, however painful, makes room for something new to be built.
What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.
I would not have guessed. It took it again and told me this:
You are The Empress
Beauty, happiness, pleasure, success, luxury, dissipation.
The Empress is associated with Venus, the feminine planet, so it represents,
beauty, charm, pleasure, luxury, and delight. You may be good at home
decorating, art or anything to do with making things beautiful.
The Empress is a creator, be it creation of life, of romance, of art or business. While the Magician is the primal spark, the idea made real, and the High Priestess is the one who gives the idea a form, the Empress is the womb where it gestates and grows till it is ready to be born. This is why her symbol is Venus, goddess of beautiful things as well as love. Even so, the Empress is more Demeter, goddess of abundance, then sensual Venus. She is the giver of Earthly gifts, yet at the same time, she can, in anger withhold, as Demeter did when her daughter, Persephone, was kidnapped. In fury and grief, she kept the Earth barren till her child was returned to her.
What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Why I make things, Part One: It's Genetic
My parents and grandparents were creative people, and so I grew up thinking that making things is a normal thing to do.
My mother's parents were tailors back in the early 20th century, in Taipei, Taiwan. They made school uniforms, engagement dresses, suits, etc. I remember a long, pale blue dress they made just for me when I was 8 or 10 years old. They came to visit us in the US and my grand mother took my measurements. After they went home to Taiwan, some time later a package came in the mail and there were the dresses they made for me and my sister. We have many pictures of my sister and me wearing matching handmade dresses that we adored.
As I grew older, I realized that after we kids went to bed, my parents would stay up and practice calligraphy and writing poetry. In Chinese, which I can't read, but still, it was evidence of the creative urge. During the day, my dad was a civil engineer and my mom was a housewife and mother of 4 kids, but during the day, they let their creativity loose.
Once my youngest siblings started school, my mother would take cake decorating classes one night a week at the community college. Those were the nights my dad would make what we called "Salvation Army stew." Basically, he would make a big pot of ramen noodles, throw in leftovers, and that was dinner.
I don't remember if it was good or bad, but I'm sure it was good. My mom's a great cook, like her mom was. My mom never used a recipe, that I can remember. She would just think about how flavors combine and make it work. That's another way her creativity expressed itself.
When we moved to Taiwan, she would take classes on flower arranging, how to make flowers and bas relief panels using modeling clay, etc. I remember a family project where all six of us made a clown out of the clay, glued it to a backing board, and each of us painted our clowns.
My dad was very creative too, and engineering requires some level of creativity. I'm not sure what all my dad did at work, but I know he designed and built a 2 story shed/playhouse with stairs and slide, and also did home improvement projects like laying pavers for a patio and building a portico out of wooden beams.
These days, shows like This Old House and all those shows on HGTV are all about how to do home improvement projects. But back in the 1980s, those shows weren't around and my dad did it all by himself.
I was conscious that we didn't have a ton of money, and now I realize, that a household of 6 with only one wage-earner living in the neighborhood we lived in at the time, we didn't have a ton of money. But my parents carved out the time and money so that my mom could take those cake decorating classes.
Because they make art, my parents buy art. Their home now holds large handcarved wooden panels depicting dragons, phoenixes, clouds. They have a wooden peacock that's at least 6 feet tall. The woodworking shop is down the block from their townhouse, so they know where the wood comes from, they know the artisan making their piece, and they can go see the artisan in action and see the many steps involved in making that one piece.
It's very similar to how my mom grew up watching her parents making a dress or suit, from measuring the client, to choosing the fabric, ironing, cutting, sewing, fitting, finishing, down to the buttons and zippers.
This was not sweatshop labor. It was artistic labor, skilled labor, that required not only capable hands, but a sharp and creative mind as well.
My mother's parents were tailors back in the early 20th century, in Taipei, Taiwan. They made school uniforms, engagement dresses, suits, etc. I remember a long, pale blue dress they made just for me when I was 8 or 10 years old. They came to visit us in the US and my grand mother took my measurements. After they went home to Taiwan, some time later a package came in the mail and there were the dresses they made for me and my sister. We have many pictures of my sister and me wearing matching handmade dresses that we adored.
As I grew older, I realized that after we kids went to bed, my parents would stay up and practice calligraphy and writing poetry. In Chinese, which I can't read, but still, it was evidence of the creative urge. During the day, my dad was a civil engineer and my mom was a housewife and mother of 4 kids, but during the day, they let their creativity loose.
Once my youngest siblings started school, my mother would take cake decorating classes one night a week at the community college. Those were the nights my dad would make what we called "Salvation Army stew." Basically, he would make a big pot of ramen noodles, throw in leftovers, and that was dinner.
I don't remember if it was good or bad, but I'm sure it was good. My mom's a great cook, like her mom was. My mom never used a recipe, that I can remember. She would just think about how flavors combine and make it work. That's another way her creativity expressed itself.
When we moved to Taiwan, she would take classes on flower arranging, how to make flowers and bas relief panels using modeling clay, etc. I remember a family project where all six of us made a clown out of the clay, glued it to a backing board, and each of us painted our clowns.
My dad was very creative too, and engineering requires some level of creativity. I'm not sure what all my dad did at work, but I know he designed and built a 2 story shed/playhouse with stairs and slide, and also did home improvement projects like laying pavers for a patio and building a portico out of wooden beams.
These days, shows like This Old House and all those shows on HGTV are all about how to do home improvement projects. But back in the 1980s, those shows weren't around and my dad did it all by himself.
I was conscious that we didn't have a ton of money, and now I realize, that a household of 6 with only one wage-earner living in the neighborhood we lived in at the time, we didn't have a ton of money. But my parents carved out the time and money so that my mom could take those cake decorating classes.
Because they make art, my parents buy art. Their home now holds large handcarved wooden panels depicting dragons, phoenixes, clouds. They have a wooden peacock that's at least 6 feet tall. The woodworking shop is down the block from their townhouse, so they know where the wood comes from, they know the artisan making their piece, and they can go see the artisan in action and see the many steps involved in making that one piece.
It's very similar to how my mom grew up watching her parents making a dress or suit, from measuring the client, to choosing the fabric, ironing, cutting, sewing, fitting, finishing, down to the buttons and zippers.
This was not sweatshop labor. It was artistic labor, skilled labor, that required not only capable hands, but a sharp and creative mind as well.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Oh, how far we haven't come....
The more outrageous statement are highlighted in purple.
The South: For Some, Uncertainty Starts at Racial Identity http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/15/us/politics/15biracial.html
By ADAM NOSSITER
Published: October 14, 2008
MOBILE, Ala. — The McCain campaign’s depiction of Barack Obama as a mysterious “other” with an impenetrable background may not be resonating in the national polls, but it has found a receptive audience with many white Southern voters.
“He’s neither-nor. He’s other. It’s in the Bible. Come as one. Don’t create other breeds.” RICKY THOMPSON, in Mobile, Ala., speaking about Barack Obama.
In interviews here in the Deep South and in Virginia, white voters made it clear that they remain deeply uneasy with Mr. Obama — with his politics, his personality and his biracial background.
Being the son of a white mother and a black father has come to symbolize Mr. Obama’s larger mysteries for many voters. When asked about his background, a substantial number of people interviewed said they believed his racial heritage was unclear, giving them another reason to vote against him.
“He’s neither-nor,” said Ricky Thompson, a pipe fitter who works at a factory north of Mobile, while standing in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart store just north of here. “He’s other. It’s in the Bible. Come as one. Don’t create other breeds.”
Whether Mr. Obama is black, half-black or half-white often seemed to overshadow the question of his exact stand on particular issues, and rough-edged comments on the subject flowed easily even from voters who said race should not be an issue in the campaign. Many voters seemed to have no difficulty criticizing the mixing of the races — and thus the product of such mixtures — even as they indignantly said a candidate’s color held no importance for them.
“I would think of him as I would of another of mixed race,” said Glenn Reynolds, 74, a retired textile worker in Martinsdale, Va., and a former supervisor at a Goodyear plant. “God taught the children of Israel not to intermarry. You should be proud of what you are, and not intermarry.”
Mr. Reynolds, standing outside a Kroger grocery store, described Mr. Obama as a “real charismatic person, in that he’s the type of person you can’t really hate, but you don’t really trust.”
Other voters swept past such ambiguities into old-fashioned racist gibes.
“He’s going to tear up the rose bushes and plant a watermelon patch,” said James Halsey, chuckling, while standing in the Wal-Mart parking lot with fellow workers in the environmental cleanup business. “I just don’t think we’ll ever have a black president.”
There is nothing unusual about mixed-race people in the South, although in decades past there was no ambiguity about the subject. Legally and socially, a person with any black blood was considered black when segregation was the law.
But the historic candidacy of Mr. Obama, who has said he considers himself black, has led some voters in the South to categorize him as neither black nor white. While many voters said that made them uncomfortable, others said they were pleased by Mr. Obama’s lack of connection to African-American politics.
“He doesn’t come from the African-American perspective — he’s not of that tradition,” said Kimi Oaks, a prominent community volunteer in the Mobile area, with apparent approval. Ms. Oaks, along with about 15 others, had gathered after Sunday services at Mobile’s leading Methodist church to discuss the presidential campaign. “He’s not a product of any ghetto,” Ms. Oaks added.
At the same time, however, she vigorously rejected the idea that race would be important in the election, a question met with general head-shaking from those assembled; Ms. Oaks said she was “terribly offended,” as a Southerner, at even being asked about this.
Jim Pagans, a retired software manager, interviewed in a strip mall parking lot in Roanoke, Va., said that while Mr. Obama was “half-Caucasian,” he had the characteristics of blacks.
“But you look at his background, you don’t think of that,” he said. “He’s more intelligent and a smarter person than McCain.”
Bud Rowell, a retired oil field worker interviewed at a Baptist church in Citronelle, Ala., north of Mobile, said he was uncertain about Mr. Obama’s racial identity, and was critical of him for being equivocal and indecisive.
But Mr. Rowell also said that personal experience had made him more sympathetic to biracial people.
“I’ve always been against the blacks,” said Mr. Rowell, who is in his 70s, recalling how he was arrested for throwing firecrackers in the black section of town. But now that he has three biracial grandchildren — “it was really rough on me” — he said he had “found out they were human beings, too.”
The South: For Some, Uncertainty Starts at Racial Identity http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/15/us/politics/15biracial.html
By ADAM NOSSITER
Published: October 14, 2008
MOBILE, Ala. — The McCain campaign’s depiction of Barack Obama as a mysterious “other” with an impenetrable background may not be resonating in the national polls, but it has found a receptive audience with many white Southern voters.
“He’s neither-nor. He’s other. It’s in the Bible. Come as one. Don’t create other breeds.” RICKY THOMPSON, in Mobile, Ala., speaking about Barack Obama.
In interviews here in the Deep South and in Virginia, white voters made it clear that they remain deeply uneasy with Mr. Obama — with his politics, his personality and his biracial background.
Being the son of a white mother and a black father has come to symbolize Mr. Obama’s larger mysteries for many voters. When asked about his background, a substantial number of people interviewed said they believed his racial heritage was unclear, giving them another reason to vote against him.
“He’s neither-nor,” said Ricky Thompson, a pipe fitter who works at a factory north of Mobile, while standing in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart store just north of here. “He’s other. It’s in the Bible. Come as one. Don’t create other breeds.”
Whether Mr. Obama is black, half-black or half-white often seemed to overshadow the question of his exact stand on particular issues, and rough-edged comments on the subject flowed easily even from voters who said race should not be an issue in the campaign. Many voters seemed to have no difficulty criticizing the mixing of the races — and thus the product of such mixtures — even as they indignantly said a candidate’s color held no importance for them.
“I would think of him as I would of another of mixed race,” said Glenn Reynolds, 74, a retired textile worker in Martinsdale, Va., and a former supervisor at a Goodyear plant. “God taught the children of Israel not to intermarry. You should be proud of what you are, and not intermarry.”
Mr. Reynolds, standing outside a Kroger grocery store, described Mr. Obama as a “real charismatic person, in that he’s the type of person you can’t really hate, but you don’t really trust.”
Other voters swept past such ambiguities into old-fashioned racist gibes.
“He’s going to tear up the rose bushes and plant a watermelon patch,” said James Halsey, chuckling, while standing in the Wal-Mart parking lot with fellow workers in the environmental cleanup business. “I just don’t think we’ll ever have a black president.”
There is nothing unusual about mixed-race people in the South, although in decades past there was no ambiguity about the subject. Legally and socially, a person with any black blood was considered black when segregation was the law.
But the historic candidacy of Mr. Obama, who has said he considers himself black, has led some voters in the South to categorize him as neither black nor white. While many voters said that made them uncomfortable, others said they were pleased by Mr. Obama’s lack of connection to African-American politics.
“He doesn’t come from the African-American perspective — he’s not of that tradition,” said Kimi Oaks, a prominent community volunteer in the Mobile area, with apparent approval. Ms. Oaks, along with about 15 others, had gathered after Sunday services at Mobile’s leading Methodist church to discuss the presidential campaign. “He’s not a product of any ghetto,” Ms. Oaks added.
At the same time, however, she vigorously rejected the idea that race would be important in the election, a question met with general head-shaking from those assembled; Ms. Oaks said she was “terribly offended,” as a Southerner, at even being asked about this.
Jim Pagans, a retired software manager, interviewed in a strip mall parking lot in Roanoke, Va., said that while Mr. Obama was “half-Caucasian,” he had the characteristics of blacks.
“But you look at his background, you don’t think of that,” he said. “He’s more intelligent and a smarter person than McCain.”
Bud Rowell, a retired oil field worker interviewed at a Baptist church in Citronelle, Ala., north of Mobile, said he was uncertain about Mr. Obama’s racial identity, and was critical of him for being equivocal and indecisive.
But Mr. Rowell also said that personal experience had made him more sympathetic to biracial people.
“I’ve always been against the blacks,” said Mr. Rowell, who is in his 70s, recalling how he was arrested for throwing firecrackers in the black section of town. But now that he has three biracial grandchildren — “it was really rough on me” — he said he had “found out they were human beings, too.”
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