Rants

Cage-Free Viewing

I understand that zoos and aquariums bring animals to people who might otherwise never see them. But we live on a continent teeming with wildlife, at least in some places. Many of our native animals can be seen wild and free. Here are seven of the most rewarding places in North America to view wild animals. Everyone will have their own choice of the very “best” place, but these locations, selected for their abundance of animals, natural settings and relative ease of access, are among the continent’s most recommended. Photo: Creative Commons / Ashley Coates

The more I think and read about zoos and places like Sea World, the more opposed I am to wildlife in captivity. The problem is, it’s SO great/educational to see wild animals up close and personal!

I found this link that lists some places where you can enjoy cage-free viewing, and I hope that when I have kids and am tempted to take them to Sea World, I remember these au naturel options instead.

Cage-Free Viewing

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The Power of Prayer

I don’t think that religion is a mass delusion at all, but I’ve come to the conclusion that prayer can be… particularly as a way to “fix” something or to get what you want.

Not that there’s anything wrong with it, in an of itself. I’ll never turn down someone’s prayers. By all means, the more people who pray for what I need or want, the better. But I do think it’s dangerous for Christians to preach that prayer works, and that God answers us.  I just don’t think that’s the case, and the pretense that it does work is only going to lead to disappointment, doubt, and self-loathing in poor unfortunate souls all over the world.

It’s true that miracles happen every day. Cancer disappears, accidents are survived, lost pets come home, and the weather clears up just in time for someone’s birthday party at the pool.

On the flip side, cancer kills, accidents destroy lives, pets die, and the storm ruins your party.

The kicker for me, of course, is that these things happen to people regardless of whether or not you prayed for it, and regardless of faith. They happen to Christians, Muslims, Wiccans, and Atheists. I wish we’d think twice before telling people to turn to prayer to solve their problems. How then do we explain when things go wrong?

What is the little girl praying for her lost dog going to think when he never comes home? What is the person praying his cancer is healed going to think when the cynic next to him is healed, but he is not?

They’re going to think they did something wrong. That God maybe doesn’t love them as much. That perhaps their prayers aren’t good enough, or that they are not Christian enough. In a way, it’s a form of victim-blaming to tell a person that their prayers or thought philosophies (like the famed Secret) will cure them, or prevent harm from coming their way.

We all know there are countless factors that go into why or why not something happens – and countless more that will forever remain a mystery. We aren’t meant to know why things happen, but I understand that’s a tough concept for people to embrace.

I pray all the time. I chat with God, vent to God, and yes, I ask God to help me. But I certainly don’t expect Him to. And who can blame him? Life isn’t supposed to be sunshine and roses. But every time someone tells me (or a vulnerable congregation) to surrender my problems to the Lord and pray them away, I cringe. I’ve never been a fan of the Church building up false expectations in people… but then again, I tend to have a “prepare for the worst” mentality these days…

CNN: Kate Middleton “Brilliant”€ for Having a Boy Instead of a Girl

CNN correspondent Victoria Arbiter would like to extend her sincerest congratulations to the Duchess of Cambridge. Nice, right? Except, wait .. she’s not so much congratulating Kate Middleton for giving birth to a healthy baby. She’s congratulating her for giving birth to a healthy baby boy.

Way to go, CNN… this is the 21st century, for goodness sake!

CNN: Kate Middleton “Brilliant”€ for Having a Boy Instead of a Girl

In Our Defense, These Were Some Pretty Fucked-Up Laws And We Were Ordered To Deliberate In Accordance With Them

erlnyc:

By Juror E6

This is the most reasonable and insightful article I’ve read all week in regards to the Zimmerman trial.  I wish people wouldn’t brush past the details.  I’m so tired of reading uninformed, angry, hateful posts on here.

Bravo to the Onion…(for those of you who are quick to anger, the Onion is satire…i.e.  this isn’t an actual juror)…but doesn’t say something when the Onion is more truthful and insightful than our own “trusted” media?  (NBC doctoring the 911 tapes comes to mind)

Thanks to Nikki for the share 🙂

In Our Defense, These Were Some Pretty Fucked-Up Laws And We Were Ordered To Deliberate In Accordance With Them

Glass ceiling? What glass ceiling?

“In our society, we don’t spend nearly enough time celebrating or appreciating smart women. And I’m as guilty of this as everyone else. Off the top of my head, I can name at least 100 female celebrities and intimate details about their personal lives. I can explain the entire Kardashian family tree, if you want. But I can barely name any women who are significantly changing the world in the field of science, or medicine, or charity.”

It’s time to talk about smart women!

Glass ceiling? What glass ceiling?

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Race in America: My Experience

Before you laugh: I realize you can’t get more Aryan than me, but even a blonde-haired, blue-eyed white female can have an “experience” with race relations in this country. And since it’s front and center in today’s cyber-debate, I want to talk about it too.

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My freshman year in college, I got one of the best compliments I’ve ever received: a bi-racial hall mate expressed her pleasant surprise that I invited everyone to a party with me – even the black people. At the time, I thought it was such an odd thing to say. I understood that it was a compliment – she emphasized how I was friendly and inclusive of everyone – but the racial aspect left me momentarily mute. In hindsight, I can say that was my first break from being truly colorblind. Division by race simply never crossed my mind, and that’s not just my white-person defense mechanisms speaking up to soothe my subconscious…

But that marked the end of my innocence (or my ignorant bliss, perhaps.) Today, I admit I am full of racial stereotypes and have a fairly involved understanding of racial nuances. Ironically, none of this “education” was provided by angry, racist white people. It was provided by my many wonderful, diverse, and mostly non-white friends in college.

I was the token white girl. My friends were black, Asian, Hispanic, and everything in between. It was fun, dramatic, and eye-opening all at once. I heard about their experiences growing up in various parts of the country, and the world. I learned of the obstacles they faced, the struggles they deal with now, and the fears they have for the future. They told me of emigrating to this country, and feeling awkward and lonely in a place full of people who looked and spoke like me. I vividly remember a long, heart wrenching conversation with a bi-racial friend who struggled with suicidal ideation because she couldn’t identify with either side, and how she felt oppressed by the conflict she dealt with between the family members who hated each other.

I also learned more (seemingly) trivial details…

I had no idea that the two black sororities and fraternities on campus hated each other – one for being “too black”, and the other for not being “black enough.” Huh?

I learned what an Oreo and a Twinkie are (more than just simply delicious.)

I learned that Japanese and Koreans harbor resentment against each other, and the history that explains why.

And I learned that pretty much any conflict, of any nature, may turn racially charged if one of you happens to be black.

I will never forget when a black girl from my dance group in college sat across from me and the rest of my leadership panel, which consisted of pretty much every color of the rainbow that you can imagine – to include other blacks. I couldn’t tell you what trivial matter had initiated the argument, but somehow, she was threatening to take her complaints to the Dean of Student Affairs and charge us with racial discrimination. That day, after years of believing race doesn’t matter, I learned that regardless of the situation – it does.

George Zimmerman may be a racist, but the jury that acquitted him was not. They did their job by interpreting an (admittedly flawed) law with reason free from passion, which is what they were supposed to do. I think this whole case is an example of how the race problem overshadowed the legal situation at hand, inflamed an already sensitive issue, and is dragging us all back down in the dirt by further dividing us.

My experiences have taught me that racism is universal. It’s not just black and white. We all harbor judgement about each other, ranging from the amusing to the plain hateful. When my old friends write posts called “My Fear of White People” and “Am I Safe – A Nation Has Justified My Fear”, it only serves to further divide us and fill our hearts with doubt, guilt, shame, anger, and a million other negative emotions, while putting the blame on one group of people (have we learned nothing???)

It’s not empowering, and it’s not constructive. It’s marginalizing and destructive. Wallowing in fear and blame is not the answer. But I worry it’s not going away any time soon.

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Things bugging me today

– Young children taking communion at church. It’s a holy sacrament, not snack time! Even though it is pretty delicious…. But seriously. I wasn’t allowed to participate till I understood what it meant!

– Ants invasion of my Raisin Nut Bran. (How gross is it on a scale of 1 to 10 that I ate it anyway?)

– Verizon Wireless. Actually, just Holly Ridge, NC. Every measure I have taken to improve my Internet situation has actually either done nothing, or made it worse, and at a co$t no less. I won’t bore you with details, but I have come to terms with a disconnected existence out here in the boonies… and a very confused bill.

– Health and nutrition studies. I heard eating too much of my beloved tuna means too much mercury in my system. So I mix some turkey sandwiches into my lunches. Turns out deli meats are high in cancer-causing nitrates. Sigh. I need to just eat what I want.

– The fact that I have no washer/dryer. Today is cleaning day and without a way to wash towels and sheets, I feel incomplete. It’s one of those small things I take for granted in daily life 🙂

End rant.

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Any time I speak what I feel, or call someone out, or make a point – however politely – I still end up feeling like a b*tch! Or guilty, at the very least. Or doubtful of my position in the first place. I thought it was supposed to be liberating?!

I guess what is liberating is not caring what people think… But it seems I’m not there yet. I really don’t like to make people feel bad. Or annoyed. Or any kind if negative emotion.

Save your way to $1 million

Just 10 years of aggressive saving can help you sock away enough money for a comfortable retirement.

As painful as it can be sometimes, I’m a big fan of the aggressive savings approach, especially while we are DINKs (Dual Income No Kids.) Maybe that makes me a Scrooge, but to do the things I want in life, money kind of helps. Plus, I am all too familiar with those unexpected hurdles that pop out of nowhere. And when the time for getting kids through college comes – all I can say is Lord have mercy!

Save your way to $1 million