Who I am…
I am a lawyer, former mother of teenagers, and a quixotic seeker after and champion of factual truth.
I make the best damn brownies you have ever had that are not regulated by the federal government.
I love movies, Broadway, and intelligent conversation.
I think in song lyrics and movie and television quotes.
I believe in the use of proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar even in text messages. I am willing to debate the use of the Oxford comma, if you know what the Oxford comma is. It also makes me very happy if people use the subjunctive mood when appropriate.
I have been told I intimidate people. I am really just a fluffy-centered teddy bear. Really.
- It's all my fault. No, really. The views expressed in this blog are mine and mine alone and in no way whatsoever represent the views of anyone else, including any past, present, or future employer.
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Words to live by ….
“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8.
“Pray for the dead, fight like hell for the living.” Mary Harris (“Mother Jones”).
“Don’t boo. Vote.” Barack Obama.
“Man’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.” Reinhold Niebuhr.
“No one ever thinks of themselves as one of Them. We’re always one of Us. It’s Them that do the bad things.” Sir Terry Pratchett.
“Damning facts are still facts.” Steven C. Holtzman.
“If you don’t stick to your values when they’re tested, they’re not values — they’re hobbies.” Jon Stewart.
“Darkness never sustains, even though it sometimes seems it will.” Doctor Who.
“Writing is a form of mischief.” Stephen Sondheim.
“An idea is not responsible for the people who believe it.” Don Marquis.
“If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it’s not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That’s why it’s your path.” Joseph Campbell.
“Truth is our strongest ally, our biggest weapon, and our best defense.” Me.
“Reality has a well-known liberal bias.” Stephen Colbert.
“The opposite of war isn’t peace, it’s creation.” Jonathan Larson.
“We live through times when hate and fear seem stronger.
We rise and fall, and light from dying embers
Remembrances that hope and love last longer.
And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love;
Cannot be killed or swept aside.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda.“If I can’t dance, I don’t want to be part of your revolution.” Emma Goldman.
“No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” Samuel Beckett.
“I believe that the God who made (among other things) light, and space, and number, and time, and the spiral curve of Fibonacci numbers, must be acknowledged to understand more than I do about why there’s pain in the world.” Teresa Neilsen Hayden.
“No, it’s not fair. You’re in the wrong universe for fair.” John Scalzi.
“Liberals got women the right to vote. Liberals got African-Americans the right to vote. Liberals created Social Security and lifted millions of elderly people out of poverty. Liberals ended segregation. Liberals passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act. Liberals created Medicare. Liberals passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act. So when you try to hurl that label at my feet, ‘Liberal,’ as if it were something to be ashamed of, something dirty, something to run away from, it won’t work, because I will pick up that label and I will wear it as a badge of honor.” Lawrence O’Donnell
“So keep fightin’ for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin’ ass and celebratin’ the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.” Molly Ivins.
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Author Archives: Pat Greene
It is Advent, when we await the arrival of He who said “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to … Continue reading
Proof that my youngest child is, in fact, forty-five: He likes goat cheese and discussing politics. He enjoys tea and wants to start collecting handmade teacups. He loves showtunes, and knows the words to nearly as many of them as … Continue reading
Bad Christmas Music, Revisited.
Remember how I said that the worst secular Christmas songs were “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer,” “Santa Baby,” and Weird Al’s “Christmas At Ground Zero”? No. I forgot the absolutely worst Christmas song, which I’m not sure I’ve … Continue reading
I have a teapot now. I grew up a bit of a wild child — a tomboy to the max — and while I was exposed to “tea” as an event rather than simply a beverage at college (Wellesley has … Continue reading
Sunday afternoon at the movies……
[I was going to write this Sunday night, but a family crisis (my son accidentally nearly set the house on fire — long story) shoved it out of my mind. Everything’s better now, if still a bit smoky.] The family … Continue reading
It’s that time of year again. I jumped the gun again, and started listening to holiday* music, even though it is only the day after Thanksgiving, and not even Advent yet. And that includes a fair amount of actual Christmas … Continue reading
Happy Thanksgiving.
Things I have to be thankful for: The boys: the Not-So-Little Drummer Boy, the Wrestler, the Red-Headed Menace, and the Rocket Scientist. That I don’t have to worry about having a roof over my head or food to feed my … Continue reading
Parental evaluation.
Parenting is a bitch. There is no instruction manual, and no exams or performance evaluations to tell you how you’re doing, so you can fix your mistakes. The worst part? You’re trying to mold young minds into growing up to … Continue reading
More probably uninteresting tidbits about my musical tastes. Mainly because I’m bored.
I have a lot of playlists on my iTunes, which make more or less sense. There’s “Broadway,” and “No Garth C0untry,” and artist-specific ones such as “Great Big Sea.” And then there are the rand0m-organizing-principle playlists, such as: “The Name … Continue reading
God’s music?
I was at my church’s yearly “Women’s Retreat” this year — a weekend of sisterhood, spiritual growth, and, as always, chocolate. It was a bit more stressful than past retreats: I had roles to play in the drama (used as … Continue reading
Rock on.
In December ’84 March ’85, Eric, a college friend of the resident rocket scientist and me, blew into Atlanta on business. We went out for the evening — Eric wanted to see local talent, so we checked out a show … Continue reading
It’s insanely beautiful today. The sky here in Northern California is that almost surreal shade of blue — too bright to be found in nature, almost, and yet too intense to be replicated on canvas. The light is as golden … Continue reading
Voter Rights
This comes very late, being only the day before the election, but I thought I’d pass it along. The NAACP Legal Defense Fund has a handy-dandy page with pdf’s of a “Voter Bill of Rights” for 45 states. They’ve developed … Continue reading
View from the stands, part II.
Whoever had the bright idea to create a mash-up of “Rhapsody in Blue” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” for that field show should be forced to mark time in 95 degree heat until they drop. The fact that the kids in the … Continue reading
A Time To Kill?
The Mad Priest posted about the execution of Jeffrey Lundgren in Ohio this week. He asks three good questions, the last of which is “what good is killing anyone?” In my comment to his post, I said I could go … Continue reading
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