The Gulf of Mexico trash heap

Just thinking about the Gulf crisis and how we treat the earth like like children who soil themselves. Even animals will not soil their own nest -- but not us! How many times will or can we do this? We can't live with the oil companies and we can't live without them. The only answer is either alternative fuels that do not harm the environment -- what are those? Or hold the corporations accountable for their failures and enforce strict rules about business practices - whether it is coal mining safety or off shore drilling. What's happened in the Gulf is the same as if NASA had sent a man to the moon with no idea how to get him back should something have happened. BP (BRITISH Petroleum - not a US company) had no back-up plan should something fail. They gambled and we lost. We all lost -- not just the people of the Gulf or the wildlife there. We - the entire population of the earth - lost. We've lost an irreplaceable resource for decades or maybe forever. We (and I include myself) need to dramatically change our behaviors if this earth is to survive as a place worthy of life.

Friends

Just thinkin about friends and what makes a friend. I attended a memorial service for a man I worked with several years ago. I also worked with his wife and continued to have an acquaintance with them even after moving on from the job. However, was he a "friend"? I've always thought of friends as being those who are close to you, someone who knows you very well inside and out. In fact I alway feel uncomfortable referring to someone as a friend, when to me they are an acquaintance or a colleague. But the memorial showed me that perhaps I'm wrong in that thinking. Perhaps those so-called acquaintances or colleagues are friends too. Am I too exclusive in my word choice? Or too narrow in my definition? This gentlemen had perhaps 150 people at his memorial -- Under my definition I doubt all would be "friends," yet here they were celebrating his life on a dismal rainy Sunday afternoon. It really didn't matter the level of contact they'd had with him, nor the depth of their relationship with him. They valued knowing him, as did I. They valued memories of time spent with him, as did I. I didn't know him inside and out, but I did respect him and enjoyed his company tremendously so many years ago. I am thankful to have known him. And yes, in the end, he was indeed a friend. I thank him too for in his death he taught me a valuable lesson even at this stage of my life. With his help my tent of friendship just got a lot bigger. Thank you Dick.

Sunshine, lollipops and roses

Just thinkin about the sun shining over Portland today. Unless you have experienced Portland's gray days in winter, you cannot imagine how joyful a day of sun is. Today is beautiful and almost spring-like. Makes one have hope that summer will once again come to the Northwest. Summer here is by the far the best of anywhere in the country -- no humidity, no bugs and clean air. Maybe that's why having gloomy days is good -- we appreciate the nice days so much more. Yes, even days like today, in the middle of January, when we know the gray will soon return. Today we rejoice in sun. We take the dogs and kids to the park. We ride the bike to the store. The kids take a little longer walking home from school and put off doing homework for an hour or so. Some of us even scratch the itch to go poking around in the garden. Celebrate the sunny days. And when we have gray skies, remember the sun is shining somewhere -- maybe not in Portland -- but somewhere.

One year later

Just thinkin about the fact that President Obama has been in office one year. It's difficult to believe a year has gone. Just remember the elation and the tough campaign -- fighting with Hillary and then McCain and Palin? We were so elated when he won. I'm still elated that he is there, but have to admit I am disappointed in him and his actions this year. For starters, his appointments do not signify change -- the bulk of whom are ex-Clinton personnel. That in itself doesn't mean they are bad, but they have seemed to continue the policies of the 1980s and 1990s. That is not change. Why has Eric Holder retained Bush attorneys in the Dept. of Justice? That is not change. Obama as a campaigner promised to close Guatanamo, didn't he? He promised a single-payer health care system. He promised to support Kiyoto and stronger regulations for the banking industry. I see an Obama the campaigner and an Obama the president. They are two different people -- which is disappointing at a minimum. The bottom line is he comes across to me as someone who is naive, inexperienced and being manipulated by more experienced staff. It is either very sad, or he sold me a "bill of goods." Either way, I am disappointed beyond expression. But the real question is where will this country go without any leadership?

For your reading pleasure

Just thinkin' about a fantastic read I finished last night. "Enduring Love" by Ian McEwan. This guy is a fantastic writer. There is something about his style where the reader is actually inside the main character's head. I absolutely have enjoyed everything I've read by McEwan, starting with "Atonement." In this book, the antagonist provoked such anger in me I actually felt like I hated the guy. That's powerful writing. Enjoy.

Haiti

Just thinking about the crisis in Haiti. We all acknowledge it is a tragic situation -- at least all but a couple of loud-mouthed public figures. But is this the time to throw stones? Today Haiti is what it is -- A toppled country, devoid of food, water and any infrastructure in its capital city of millions. The time to question its extreme poverty and corruption was before the earthquake struck. Why now are people waking up to question the years of corruption and neglect? Why do we wait for a tragedy to see the shortcomings and needs around us? We also didn't see (or at least the Corps of Engineers wouldn't admit seeing) that the sea walls in New Orleans would not hold, yet it takes a tragedy to get the attention of folks. And then they begin screaming that "they should have done something." The time to do "something" is before the disaster -- not after it. What other tragedies await us because we refuse to see?