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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Category Archives: Family
The Rocket Scientist just texted a picture of him and other scientists in the plane that will take him from Christchurch, New Zealand to McMurdo Station, Antarctica. They have been prevented from going for days, and yesterday they got an … Continue reading
The best gift I’ve ever given.
The Red-Headed Menace listed “dihydrogen monoxide” on his wish list for Christmas. So I gave him a full liter of the stuff. He loved it.
Christmas Day.
I am sitting here on the couch in my mother-in-laws house. It’s been a couple of years since we have been here. We have not yet opened presents — we are waiting for my brother-in-law and my nieces to arrive. … Continue reading
Endearments.
I call The Rocket Scientist “dear.” I call the kids “hon” (individually — as a group they are “you guys”), usually with my eyes shut and my hand rubbing the bridge of my nose in exasperation*: “Hon, just because the … Continue reading
Well of course, silly. She’s a *cat*.
Penwiper strolls through the living room into the dining room, where I am sitting. Me: Good morning, sweetheart.The Rocket Scientist, from the kitchen: I assume you were talking to the cat, not me.Me: That’s right — how did you know?RS: … Continue reading
Here’s looking at you, kid.
Today is the Not-So-Little Drummer Boy’s birthday. For the first time I will not be able to celebrate in person with him. I so wish this were different. The NSLDB was born at seven minutes past midnight, November 20, 1990. … Continue reading
It’s that time of year again…
Some people in my neighborhood still have the spiderweb decorations up from Halloween, while others have already put up their Christmas lights.
It’s Saturday, which brings one of the highlights of my week. Every Saturday morning, whichever members of the household are in town head down to the neighborhood Starbucks. We get breakfast and coffee and just chat. This morning, that was … Continue reading
Schadenfreude postponed
Under normal circumstances, I might be snickering about the possibility of Tropical Storm (expected to strengthen into Hurricane) Isaac hitting Tampa the first day of the Republican Convention. So, fundamentalists, what would God be punishing the GOP for? Failing to … Continue reading
Happy Birthday, kid.
The Red-headed Menace turns sixteen today. It’s scary and bittersweet for me, and I suspect for him, as well. He is becoming an adult before my eyes, filled with gravitas and determination. He always did have a serious side, seeming … Continue reading
Wii woes.
I am trying to change my habits. Really. Truly. Part of this change is actually engaging in physical activity. As my doctors and I get the dosages of the pain meds into something that vaguely provides an acceptable balance between … Continue reading
Pomp and circumstance.
Odd musings from the cheap seats at a high school graduation: Am I weird that I would love to go back to school just to be able to wear a doctoral hood?* Mr. B. clearly got the memo about going … Continue reading
"We’re so geeky," moment deux.
I sent an email to my family, and the Red-Headed Menace responded in person, not telling me what I wanted to know, but criticizing the grammar of my email signature.
The cause of yet another "My God, we’re so geeky" moment
This morning’s discussion centered on whether the house’s hot-water schema could be best analogized to riparian or diversionary water rights systems.
Happy Birthday, Mom.
My mom turned eighty-five today. She was born in 1927 in Sarasota, Florida. For most of those eighty-five years, she has lived in Florida, in Sarasota, or, later in life, in St. Petersburg. In that, she follows a long line … Continue reading
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