Blog or white ... because it never is.

  1.  If your supporters are urging/begging you to denounce  to white supremacist groups, chances are you have NOT denounced white supremacist groups   2.  If your comments result in the largest increase in people wanting to join white supremacist groups, chances are you have NOT denounced white supremacist groups.   3.  If a white supremacist group are excited and invigorated by your remarks, chances are you have NOT denounced white supremacist groups.   4.  If a white supremacist group is "merchandising your comments" in the form of t-shirts, key chains, etc, chances are you have NOT denounced white supremacist groups.   Do you see a pattern...........and, for clarity If you have not actually denounced white supremacist groups, you don't have the moral compass necessary to hold public office.  

  I know of at least three trolls that monitor my social media.  I put on my happy mask and pretend I am not affected by this.  I understand that two of my trolls are just doing a job, so I actually respect them. (It sounds much more mysterious than it actually is.)   The third troll causes a visceral reaction in me.  Basically, that means my body instantly reacts before I can even think or process. This troll expresses dissatisfaction for my social media entries to another person and immediately I am fearful.  I don't know what exactly I am scared of but I sure put the fitbit to good use as I am pacing for most of the next three days.   I didn't understand why I was having such a strong reaction until I watched the circus masquerading as the Presidential debate last evening.  I was having the same reaction and I couldn't understand why.   Now, I get it.  So many parallels between my troll and the Republican nominee. ...

  I have to confess that initially I thought that Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to SCOTUS would help Democrats.  I really felt that Republicans tolerated Trump only for his potential to fill the Court and once that was exhausted that they would move on.   After all, I believe that there is no chance in hell that Roe vs Wade will ever be overturned.   Well, I was right and I was wrong.  Roe vs Wade will never be overturned, however, it will experience death by a thousand paper cuts.  Tiny little aspects of a woman's right to choose are going to be eroded gradually essentially gutting it.   And, there are going to be other threats to basic human rights that are potential to suffer the same slow fate.  I was doing what I usually do on Sundays, watch the news.  An amazing couple were interviewed.  These men were the couple whose case went to the Supreme Court resulting in Same Sex Marriage Equality.  I was very moved wat...

  There was a little girl who was as white as you can get.  Literally, a porcelain doll.  And, that little girl was me.   Seriously, growing up, I didn't have to wear a costume on Halloween, I was already a ghost.  White, white, white.   And, yes, there was something wrong with that.  Trust me.  It is called the sun.  I love the warmth of the sun on my skin.  However, for decades, I would go from porcelain to red lobster.  Absolutely nothing in between. White.  Red.  White.  Red.   Believe me, I am so grateful that as I have aged, I have added some pigment to my skin and I can experience some shades in between.  I know repeated sun exposure is not healthy, but, I was so excited when I turned 40 and actually had a tan.   Today, September 30, we are having a conversation about a white supremacist group.  It doesn't sadden me that these groups exist, it horrifies me.  It is li...

  The picture has nothing to do with anything, I just like it.   I have always wondered why Melania is still married to The Orange Menace.  She appears to be a woman of class, yet she appears in public with possibly the most classless man that has ever been to the White House, let alone lived in it.   Finally, last night, I understood why.  She stays with him because she doesn't want to pay him alimony.  She has actually made money in her life and she damn well doesn't want to give him half.   Hash tag Free Melania.   Hash tag Melania, you have overwhelming evidence to declare him incompetent and have him admitted to either a psychiatric facility or a personal care facility.  Please......

  After watching Vice-President Pence over the last four years, I have googled him many times as he is quite forgettable and I keep having to refresh myself on details about him.  I don't particularly like him, however, I have concluded that he is a man of great faith.  He actually walks the walks. I have to wonder what he actually thinks about Trump. How does he reconcile his high moral code with Trump?  How does he deal internally with a new book coming out almost daily "telling all" about Trump?  How can he honestly think that his country is not in trouble after watching whatever last night was.  What does Pence actually think?   I watched Amy Coney Barrett starting her meetings with Republican Senators yesterday.  She looked horrified. She knows what is coming. She will be confirmed but she will always have a foot note attached to her for the rest of her life. I believe that her nomination to the Supreme Court is certainly the honour of h...

  The word on the networks is that Trump's wealth has literally been a house of cards.  Not news to me.   It was the fall of 1993.  Two months earlier, I had given birth to a premature baby who weighed 3 lbs.  He has grown into the best man I know.  When he was a baby, however, he did not understand the concept of sleep.  He usually went down for the night at 9:30 pm.  Somewhere around 11:30 pm, he would wake up and not go back to sleep until 6:30 am.  He was extremely considerate in that he would go to sleep (for two hours) in time for me to make breakfast for my husband.   Anyway, this was hard to imagine but at the time, there were only two options for tv viewing from 11:30 pm - 6:30 am.  I could either pace to The Weather Network or The Shopping Channel.  I became very familiar with both.   One thing that I found fascinating was Ivana Trump on The Shopping Channel hawking some very gawdy jewelry. Her sig...

  We have roughly 40 personal care homes in Winnipeg.  About half of them are for profit.  Apparently, there is money in taking care of people who need our care.  The residents of these facilities have often worked and paid taxes for decades. Most people don't realize that residents actually pay for their care while residing in a personal care home.  There is a sliding scale for how much this care costs to the residents.  Essentially, the personal care home takes everything (their pensions) and leaves them about $200/month, more or less.  That sounds fair considering the personal care home provides all the services they need.  Except, a couple of hundred dollars per month doesn't cover telephone services, TV cable services, or a newspaper.  It also doesn't cover the cost of a walker or wheelchair if needed.  If you require a mechanical lift for your transfers, you will be required to purchase your own slings.  You may need a haircut...

 It is the Saturday before Monday when masks will be mandatory and there will be no longer be groups larger than 10.  Bars, restaurants, gyms, churches, and casinos will remain open.  One reporter asked Dr. Roussin about attending a wedding with 50 people next weekend.  Dr. Roussin said it would now be a wedding with 10 people.  But, if a restaurant can still be open to capacity, can't they just say it is a coincidence that they are all gathering for a wedding?  Last evening, I went to get groceries and noticed a line more than a block long for people to get into the liquor store.  I don't know if this is people preparing to spend more time at home or what?  I note that the City can not enforce the bylaw on smoking so how is the mask mandate going to work?  There were 65 new cases announced in Manitoba.  September sucks big time.  One of my facebook friends sarcastically asked for more pictures of leaves to be posted, but, truly, th...

  It is the first day of fall.  I know some love the fall as their favourite season.  They love the colours and the cooler weather.  I have never liked fall or spring.  I guess I am more of an all or nothing kind of gal.   The think mostly what I haven't liked fall is the connotations it brings.  "Fall from grace" is negative.  A "fall" is usually going to result in some injuries and if you elderly, it might be fatal.  So, I seem to wake up every first day of fall feeling heavy.  Before the day has even prevented itself, I already have judged it negatively.   Today, fall is really pissing me off.  I have been all psyched to have a terrible day and the weather is making it very hard to be miserable.   But, as it often does, the universe has a way of speaking to me.  Next year, Fall of 2021 will be a celebration.  It will serve to me an example that good things can happen in all seasons.   ...

  I have watched all the news that I can consume since her death.  I have watched the President accuse her dying wish as being forged.  I have watched the hypocrisy of the Republic Senators and have been angered by their words.  But, after watching and reading everything I can, I have concluded that Donald Trump's nomination will be confirmed before the election.  It is horrific but it is true.   And, I know that it doesn't really affect me.  I try to imagine myself living in the States and try to feel what I would be feeling. The truth is that it wouldn't affect me that much.  I am a person who has white privilege and all that it comes with.  I assume that would still be the case in the States.  I assume that I wouldn't be that concerned about my basic rights being upheld.  Despite what the President says about the radical left being a deep threat, I don't think so.  Also, I am past the age of reproduction, so those right...

  I didn't blog last week because I was busy working on another project.  I have to be honest, my blog is important to my mental health.  It keeps me having intellectual curiosity and it helps me make sense of my world.  I have a book that I carry around that I write down blog ideas.  This past week, I wrote down 9 items for blogs this week.  But, so far, I have nothing to say.  And, it is not that there is nothing to say.  Last time I checked, there is still something wrong in the state of Denmark.   It is just a feeling of depletion.  When I was in high school, my best friend and I used to disagree on everything.  We had divergent views on two issues and we used to disagree.  I am not saying this ever happened, but if we were able to consume alcohol (we were underage), our disagreements would become more heated but we were still best friends. One would have thought that if we consumed alcohol while underage, we would hav...

I learned a lot of things because of school but not in school.  I went on an amazing field trip in Grade 9 that included a day in Dallas.  We were able to see the window in the Book Depository building where Oswald shot JFK and we were able to go to the grassy knoll.  We had an imaginative teacher who alerted us to the curse of US elections in years that end in 0.  It happens every twenty years.   I never went further back than 1900.  President William McKinley was re-elected in 1900 only to be assassinated in 1901.  v In 1920, President Harding won a landslide.  He died in 1923 before completing his term.   Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the longest serving President of the United States having served before the two term limit was established.  He was re-elected in 1940.  Although he survived that term, he was elected again in 1944 and died shortly after that not completing his term.   In the 1960 election, John...

Kids are back in school.  It is uncomfortable for most parents sending their children back.  Everyone has concerns regardless of where you find yourself politically.  I was a good student in elementary school except for grade 3.  I still have my report cards (thanks mom) and 5/6 are very consistent in the markings and comments.  I was adorable.  Except for grade 3.  Grade 3 I was solidly average and didn't even stand out enough for additional comments.  My parents were deliriously happily married for over 25 years and completely unhappy for 1 year.  The year that I was in Grade 3.  I remember the night it started.  My dad had been travelling with his job and came home in late evening.  My mom had been crying most of the evening and she told my dad some news about her best friend.  They started arguing and then screaming at each other.  I went down stairs to try and mediate and was promptly told to go back to bed....

To say that workplaces have been significantly impacted by Covid19 would be an understatement.  For some of us, going to work literally means that we are risking our lives.  Many workplaces have adopted working from home protocols.  Some workplaces have found this to be beneficial and will continue while others are trying to return their employees back to work. One of the challenges for the new workplace culture will be dealing with grief.  That isn't new.  Bereavement leave has often being handled different by different employers.  It is one of those things that is very indicative of workplace culture. My husband goes to many funerals.  His reality is that he has lived in the same community for most of his life and he has connections to many organizations and a wide social circle.  These days, most "celebrations of life" are on weekends or in the evenings, but there still are many that happen during traditional "work" time.  So, to atte...

My theme for 2020 was to be more intentional.  I made this in January before I had any idea of what was coming in the world.  What I meant is that I did not want to waste time doing things that did not contribute positively to the world.  My partner had his own theme for the year:  Be Kind.  Our themes were complementary.  Both of us wanted to make sure that our footprint on the world was positive. Once the State of Emergency Orders took place in our province and country, I think most of us examined our priorities and determined what was really important to us.  This also came at a time when a great racial reckoning is underway.  Those of us who are white have had to do a deep analysis and come to terms with how we have benefited from white privilege.  I start many of my days listening to the Billy Porter cover of For What It's Worth.  It is a great cover and I find it gives me a little get up and go.  And, I have needed it....

6 years ago today, I lost my mom.  I was well prepared because my mom started her journey to death at the end of 1992 when my dad passed.  She never really recovered from the broken heart of living without him.  I knew this day was coming but I also forgot, but, your body always knows, and my body forced me to remember.  And, it is not just today.  Losing a loved one is never easy.  Grief never goes away, it just changes, and some days, it is stronger than others.  My mom was larger than life.  Always laughing.  Always listening.  Always supportive of her friends, and she had a lot of them.  We didn't always agree and now that time has passed, I realized that it was because I was jealous of her.  Life seemed easy for her.  She made friends so easy and she had no problem standing up to anyone.  It was harder for me.  Regardless, I am grateful that in the last two years of her life that we became best frien...

I was blessed to have some amazing teachers.  The reason I know I had some great teachers is because I also had some bad teachers.  You wouldn't think Dauphin would be able to attract such amazing talent but we had more than our share.  When I was in Grade 9, I had an outstanding math teacher.  Imaginative, creative, inspiring, and dedicated.  He was newly married to another teacher who was also one of my favorites.  She was equally extraordinary and I think they inspired each other. He designed his own curriculum called "Common Sense Math".  One day a week, we were living in the real world (figuratively).  We told him what we wanted to be and he gave us the mean salary of that profession.  He taught us about deductions and we were able to calculate our net pay.  Then, we had to make a budget.  If we wanted to rent, we had to find a suitable rental from the newspaper and factor the asking amount in our budget.  If we want...