Kids’ news program February 8, 2009
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I saw Nick News with Linda Ellerbee for the first time tonight, didn’t really know what it was, but just stopped on the Nickelodeon channel and there it was. The show’s theme was on race relations, the recent election and inauguraiton of President Barack Obama and I was amazed at the intelligent, insightful and thoughtful comments the children in the different news segements had to share. It really gives me hope to hear middle and high school students sound so hopeful and focused on the future, but also determined to learn, act and follow through. I am happy that the new president has managed to stir up the youngest generations to action, respect, and determination to accomplish greatness through hard work and persistency.
Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act January 29, 2009
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President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law just a few minutes ago. I watched it live on TV. It brought me to tears. I am so proud.
27 January 26, 2009
Posted by midnightzimadreams in Family, Gibberish, Grad school, International Relations, Life, Media, New Media, Reminiscing, Superfluous musings.add a comment
I turn 27 on the 27th. I used to look ahead to this distant date and wonder what exciting things I would be up to. Turns out – not much. I do love my life – I have a wonderful family that isn’t too scattered. I live in a nice town. I have beautiful memories – recent and old. I feel peaceful and happy at home. But there are also many things I’ve yet to reach for – graduate school and the pursuit of more knowledge being the primary star.
But then I look around the world and realize that I don’t deserve to complain and whine about the things I’ve yet to achieve. I just have to do them. And what’s a better time than now – when the world is so involved, so open and yet mysterious. There is an international economic crisis. There are the persistent hunger, disease, violence and suppression problems with the difference that nowadays they are as familiar and proximate as the Internet and all of its media ancesorts can make them, ushering them into our living rooms continuously. There is so much impact to have. It’s definitely overwhelming, but it is also urgent and inviting at the same time.
Perhaps that is the significance of 27 – the year I will take the ultimate tangable action towards those abstract dreams. Amen.
This is not one of those age-related crises. At least I don’t htink it is. If anything it is an interesting fascination with the number. Besides the fact that it is 27 on the 27th, it has also been sort of dear number. The favorite of mine is 3, 2+7=9=3^3.
Historical moments January 26, 2009
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Inauguration Day 2009 is one of those dates taht I believe people will recall with the “where were you when …” prompt. I was at home, then listening to NPR on my commute (on foot and Max) and then at my desk at work, watching the event on NYTimes.com. That evening, my boyfriend and I went to the Oregon Democratic Party celebration (the dance party at a local club one, not the $100+ per plate dinner). The sight and sounds were incredible. Young and not-so-young people, dance music, live DJ. And then they stopped all and replayed the President’s inaugural speech on two large screens. Everyone listened, everyone applauded right at the natural pauses. It was elecrtifying. What a difference a crowd makes – feeling connected and experiencing other people’s reactions elicited one more wave of emotionally overwhelming thrill.
The one morsel I would like to take away from the experience is the call to action – to volunteer and to keep a strong work ethic in these trouble times. May we all remain as driven and active as the President has demonstrated to be the day after.
Fish tales January 26, 2009
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My boyfriend gave me a betta as an early birthday present this weekend. I used to have one in college when we first met. It feels great to finally have a pet – our first one together. Named him Leo McGarry – after the chief of staff in The West Wing. We’ve been watching the show on DVD via Netflix and loving how well it parallels with the current political situation. That same day, after we set up Leo in his fish bowl, we sat down to watch an episode of the fourth season and the character Leo McGarry said in a conversation with the President that he doesn’t like human names for pets. Hah! Perfect.
For the record, we love Toby Ziegler as a pet name, but we are saving that one for the Boston terrier we will someday adopt.
Transparent and accessible government January 14, 2009
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The Obama transition team continues to amaze me. I am in awe at how accessible and engaged they are portraying the President-elect to be.
I was very pleasantly … well, not surprised, not really … when the team announced, via Michelle Obama, their call for a day (and/or weekend) of volunteer service for the MLK Jr. holiday this year, just before the innauguraiton. But what is truly an innovative idea is the “Citizen’s Briefing Book.” I first received the e-mail addressed from Valerie Jarrett (co-chair of the Obama-Biden Transition Project ) this morning. It may have been distributed earlier and only reached me recently, but nonetheless, it is impressive when I log in the afternoon of the same day and there are already several thousand ideas collected. A glance at the list of recent topics and it is obvious these are serious, thoughtful ideas… no spamming here. Well, either that gets filtered out (which would also be indicative of the commitment on the Obama team’s side) or people are considerate and eager to get engaged. It’s probably a bit of both.
So, the book itself will be a collection of the most popular ideas submitted to this web site and it will be assembled in the same binder as the incoming President’s other briefing documents. He will actually look at it himself. Talk about a direct line to your top leader! Genious.
I hope his administration keeps up the fantastic job the campaign and transition team have done thus far to make ordinary people feel connected and engaged once again. It’s a mighty feat in today’s communication tools onslaught.
Rethinking reactions to 9/11 December 31, 2008
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We’ve been hooked on “The West Wing” for a few weeks now. Often we’ve been binging on several episodes per day. So, we are now into the first discs of season 3. Saw the first episode of that today and it was completely dedicated to 9/11 – starting off with an address from all of the main characters’ actors talking about the bravery of the police forces and firefighters in NYC, donating to responding charities, and explaining that the premier for the season will be an out-of-sequence episode that will tackle related issues. I was mesmerized by the discussions/lectures that the team gave to a visiting group of high school students at the White House. The students were used as the questionners and they expressed a lot of the typical fear and ignorance that was prevalent at the time. I was impressed that the show spent that segment of the storyline completely rebuffing ratial prejudices. There were only two parallel stories in the episode. The cheif of staff had the other one and he was interrogating an Arab-American who works at the White House and whose name popped up on a CIA security breach alias list. I was disappointed not so much with the strife and the blatant profiling. That had to be a storyline if the episode was to explore the painful, realistic reactions of the country at that time. But I was disappointed with the chief of staff’s “apology” after the White House employee was cleared (for umpteenth time in his life, after a faulty accusation based on his background). It was a lame, far-from-elloquent, failed and childish excuse.
I don’t know how soon after 9/11 season 3 premiered. But I hope it was right away and I hope people watching then (or now, for that matter) really take a long, deep, introspective look at their own gut reactions and hopefully avoid the trap of excuses just because of “extraordinary circumstances.”
Moral in summary: (as quoted in the show and taken here from this web site)
- Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
Resolutions December 31, 2008
Posted by midnightzimadreams in Gibberish, Superfluous musings.add a comment
At dinner the innevitable question came – what will my resolutions be for 2009… Hmm, I think 2008 was all-in-all a pretty good year. I thought I’d just keep the ones from that year, scratch off the 8 and pen-in a 9 on the sheet that’s hanging over my desk at home.
After all, the presidential election was historic, filled the country with hope and pride again. We got through a GRE class and took the test. Everyone in my immediate family still has their health and jobs. I did well on most of my new year’s resolutions. Not to say that it was a tremendous year – not by any stretch. The economic “collapse” comes to mind first and foremost. Friends have lost loved ones, jobs… but friends have also become engaged, married (not the same couple), found jobs, purchased first homes, etc.
It has been a very eventful year. I’d like to think it has been an overall good one. And I also hope the upcoming one will be full of promising successes and new adventures, even if things do continue to get tougher. I know we’ll all re-learn a lot of basics – discipline with our pocketbooks, appreciation for the small things and for the people and animals in our lives first.
I don’t want to get too mushy. So, here’s my 2008 resolutions list and I think I’m translating it all to 2009.
read more – check (even joined goodreads.com this month)
blog more – well… this one needs some more work
apply to grad school – semi-check (got a pretty good step in the right direction – GRE done!)
workout more/be more active/join a STEP class – sort-of-check (we did hit the gym, though we need to do so more often; did go to a couple of STEP classes, but need to do it a regular thing; we played tennis once! it was so much fun! we’ve been to parks and on walks a lot this past summer)
shop less – check-ish (still working on it, but I think there has been a measurable improvement)
save more $ – check (gotta keep up the work, but have dropped the ball on retirement contributions; also should probably get rid of the student loans sometime soon)
visit friends and family more often – can never get too much of this one
live in the moment – needs work, but I’m getting there
get into counseling – would be nice… but there’s a reason it’s towards the end of the list
volunteer – tiny-check (did a bit of gardening through work and a few times with my significant half at a candidate’s table for the ‘08 election at a local market; would love to do a lot more)
start a book club – baby steps (see the note about goodreads.com above!)
world map for visitors – idea came from one of Portland’s famous beer festivals, this one was on the river shore… you had to be there; it’s an inside joke/goal
cocktail parties – yeah… we’ll see; we need to move first and may pair these with the book club… so I guess they won’t be so much cocktail parties as informal get-togethers with friends that we host once we are back in the Puget Sound (fingers crossed); call ‘em what you will; we want more friends’ time
All of these need a ton of work. But I’m motivated. Two weeks off at the end of the year really helped put me at ease and put everything in perspective. I’ll tackle them all. For now, I am going to turn to an unofficial New Year’s Eve tradition of mine – playing Sims2. And later I am going to read “Atlas Shrugged.” Please don’t spoil it for me. It’s such a good book and one of those I’ve meant to read for a while!
Happy New Year! Cheers!
Being a part of history November 5, 2008
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People have already identified Nov. 4, 2008 as one of those days that everyone will recall – where were you when Barack Obama was elected president of the United States of America?
I was at home. Crying, overwhelmed by emotion. Watching the speeches and crowds on TV – all over the States and abroad as well! I printed a few front-pages of news organizations from around the world. I celebrated with my love and I couldn’t keep my eyes dry for more than 30 seconds at a time. But we wanted to feel more a part of the moment, so under the pretext of getting smoothies, we made our way to the local Democrats’ gathering place and sat among those moseying the hallways, leaving with their “President Obama” placards, or lingering to chat with friends – new and old. It felt electrifying, even though we arrived way past the time of elation, the speeches by both major party candidates. The mood was positive and uplifting. I know it is bitter to lose, but I also have had a sense of more warmth and unity from the Democratic side throughout this election season (all 2+ years of it). That feeling leaves me hopeful and peaceful today, the first full day with a President-Elect Barack Obama.
I am happy to have had the opportunity to be a voter in this momentous election.
