The Book Blogs - Broken Government - Judicial Branch

I've started reading the 3rd chapter about the state of the Judicial Branch. It's an easier read than the 2 previous chapters for the main reason that it's not PISSING ME OFF like the other chapters did.

That being said, I haven't posted on my blog in a long time, longer than I wanted to go without posting. I haven't done so mostly because I've been too lazy to discipline myself to sit down and take the time out to write about whatever. Also, I hadn't been writing because I had stopped reading the book. I had stopped reading it because the last 2 chapters I read really upset me...to the point where I wasn't sure if I was going to even want to finish it. But yesterday, while Frank was reading his new book What Jesus Meant, I decided to be productive and pulled out the book and started reading chapter 3. I want to say I got maybe half way through. It's a LONG chapter!

This book has made me reaffirm something else about books that affect how I read them: Since I already have a hard enough time looking forward to reading, I need some frequent senses of accomplishment as I read. And these "accomplishments" come in the form of finishing chapters. If chapters are short, I'll finish it faster because I'll see my progress which, in turn, motivates me to read more and ultimately finish. If the book has few chapters, the book better be damn short, because I *hate* chapters that are 50 pages long. I hate that. And this current 3rd chapter in Broken Government is like 70 pages long. Grrr.

Besides the layout of the book, school has gotten busier, and I've had to deal with burn-out issues. Today is Memorial Day (thank you, troops!), and tomorrow is Tuesday, June 1st. Our last day of school is Thursday, June 3rd. That pisses. me. off. I *hate* that out school year goes into June! Ugh! The kids are tired and have checked out. And the teachers, including myself, probably checked out after Spring Break. I don't want to go back to school tomorrow. In fact, even though today is Monday, I feel like it's a Sunday since we had a 3-day weekend. And don't get me wrong; as much as I LOVE 3-day weekends, this one is always hard because it's a big tease before the summer comes. That's just fucked up. *shrugs* WHY?! Why make us teachers, who work so hard all year, be teased this way? Are we seriously just supposed to fill a certain number of working days? Because if that's the reason why we're going into June, then that's stupid. I'm sorry, but it is. Anyway, I should probably shut up considering there are plenty of people who wish they had the same 3 months off (paid) that teachers do. I'm bitching about how I have 3 more days of school left, and other people have to earn vacation time. For us, it's part of the package.

I'll make it, but I'll probably bitch on the way out about how school should've ended on Friday, May 28th. The good news is that next year, we DON'T go into June, and we'll have a week off for Thanksgiving as well as Spring Break. That I think is appropriate; a week off in the Fall, and a week off in the Spring, with 2 weeks off between semesters...and the random days off we get sporadically.

Back to the book.

So, this chapter about the Judicial Branch is pretty much talking about how those justices whom have served on it, how they've become nominated, and how the parties in power have affected which judges end up serving. It also explained something I didn't know about, but am not surprised about; we have apparently 4 different types of judges: minimalists, fundamentalists, and 2 others I can't recall. But the most common were these 2 I've mentioned. I can't remember what the deal was with minimalist judges, but fundamentalist judges are those who base their decisions by interpreting the Constitution as it was written in its time. So they apply it to a contemporary situation based on its original context. I thought it was interesting, but this chapter isn't anywhere nearly as fired up in its writing as the previous 2 chapters were. But I'm not finished with this one either. The author is about to discuss how the branch was affected by Bush Sr.'s reign, as well as W's reign, and they both have a few pages dedicated to themselves.

Frank already finished his book, which made me slightly jealous because I wish I could read faster than I do. That's the main reason why I don't buy books that become movies. I've never read any of the Lord of the Rings series, nor The Chronicles of Narnia, nor the Harry Potter series. None of them, because as thick as those books are, it'll take me forever to finish whereas I can enjoy the story (though I know they're not usually faithful to their books) by watching a movie and be finished in a few hours. I know people who've read books...BIG books, within a 24-hour period. I don't know if I could ever do that.

*sigh* I better finish this post. I have some work I gave myself to do that I need to have ready to distribute to my students over the next couple of days. These last 3 days will be CRAZY.

The Book Blogs - Broken Government

I've completed reading the 2nd chapter, all about how the Executive Branch is broken and in need of repair. Though Dean clearly has a justifiable disdain for Republican governance, it's clear his disdain and disapproval increases, and is passed on to the reader, towards Dick Cheney.

To briefly summarize this chapter, Dean's argument mainly consisted of a theory...a theory that the president should be exercising more power than he has the right to. If this theory is enacted, then political corruption is the clear result. When our government was established over 2 centuries ago, our founding fathers made it clear that they didn't want their government resembling the monarchy they tried to declare independence against. The president would not be a dictator, and the power of the government would not be concentrated in one lone entity. Rather, they implemented a system of checks and balances. Remember that term from Political Science 101? It's a system that makes sure all 3 branches of government - legislative (Senate and House of Representatives), executive (president and vice president), and judicial (Supreme Court Justices) - would ensure that neither of the other branches would ever embrace any form of corruption. They'd ensure that no branch was acting autonomously. Each branch should ideally work together to create and uphold laws and resolutions that would serve to *benefit* the people, aka, the citizens of the United States of America.

But...

In Dick Cheney's mind, the president is entitled to virtually unlimited power, and should run the government that way. Doing so makes it inevitable for checks and balances preventing corruption to become essentially nullified. What does that do as a result? It can, over time, change the way a country is run. And for 8 years our "misunderestimated" president turned a country founded on beliefs of democracy to become an almost fascist nation, in which corporations and the wealthiest of the wealthy were, in effect, running the country: a plutonomy.

*sigh* 

Reading this chapter of the book angered me to the point where I nearly stopped reading. I was so pissed off! I felt so disgusted and betrayed! I didn't even vote for that asshole! But before I'd let my anger and resentment take hold of me, I was able to take a step back and remember that our country is now run by someone who knows how to pronounce "nuclear." And then I was able to calm down again.

It's not the first time a book has upset me because what I'm reading in it hurts me as I recall events passed during W's reign. However, if I haven't finished the book (which I haven't, otherwise I would've said that already), it's mostly because it's gotten difficult to read. Though it discusses events that are in our past, and our country is now headed in a better (*I* believe) direction, it all too frequently makes me reminisce of what was among our darkest years in our country.

The next chapter I have to read is all about the judicial branch, and the final and 4th chapter will discuss what "repairs" are needed to bring this country back to its greater glory.

Given how busy - and tired! - I am after school and how lazy I am on the weekends, I don't know when I'll finish the book. I hope to have it finished before school's over. It's barely mid-April, and the last day of school is June 3rd. We'll see.

As for my love of reading, it's still about the same as it has always been. I don't know if it's the subject matter of Broken Government that is keeping me from falling in love with reading. If I was in love, I wouldn't go days without reading like I do now. I'm still dealing with the fact that when I have time to read, I still elect to do other things with my time. The discipline isn't there at all. A part of me won't keep reading because the book upsets me. Another part of me doesn't read because I haven't disciplined myself to pick it up and do it.

Maybe I should pick a more light-hearted book. *shrugs* I don't know.

Okay, I'm off to bed now. That shrug was accompanied by a yawn.

The Book Blogs - Broken Government and The Art of Happiness

I've been very bad about reading the book. I'm almost through with the 2nd chapter, though. Its last section discusses the so-called evils of Dick Cheney. The next chapter will discuss the Judicial Branch as the chapter I'm currently on is discussing the Executive Branch (and the preceding chapter focused on the Legislative).

I remember when I started blogging about this book, I made it clear that more than anything, I was hoping my blogging would chronicle and reflect a change in my perception of reading; that I'd fall in love with it. I can say that definitely hasn't happened yet. Over the last few weeks, if I ever have a chance to read, I end up electing to do something else with my time. I'll get on Facebook, watch YouTube videos, clean the house, watch a DVD I've seen a million times (like Glee), whatever. Reading a book for leisure still hasn't become an active practice.

On the other hand...

This past Christmas, my wonderful Frank gave me an audio book. It's the first time I've even ever received one! It's a book co-authored by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and a psychiatrist, Howard Cutler, M.D. entitled "The Art of Happiness in a Troubled World". The audio book took me a few months to finish listening to it as it contained 14 hours on 11 CDs. Also, I had to discipline myself to listen to it over my iPod or the radio where I could enjoy hearing Taylor Swift sing about how some (super cute) guy belongs with her. Nevertheless, the book was FASCINATING! I learned so much about life, perceptions, emotions, the human condition, etc. The book is FILLED with information that I'm convinced can benefit multitudes of people. It'd take several blogs to even summarize it justly. The subject matter is honestly so complex, one really has to sit and listen to the entire book (or just read it) to fully grasp its message.

So since I've finished that book, let me say I HIGHLY recommend it. The Dalai Lama's tremendous depth of wisdom and insight, coupled with social and scientific research reviews make for a fascinating and enlightening read, to say the *least*.

*sigh*

I hope to blog again soon. Now that it's post-Spring Break at school, it's gonna be a whirlwind until Summer arrives! Got a house to maintain, a 52-member choir to direct for 5th grade graduation, and lots of work to prepare for Kodály Level III this July.

*looks up* Hey, Jesus, if you could resurrect yourself in 3 days, help me get through the next 60.

Amen.

- Posted from my iPhone

Whoosh!

I'm in total disbelief in that is seems this school year has just gone by in a flash! There are days and weeks when I feel like I'm drowning in work - though good work - that by the time I come up for air and call home, I get a tease of "Hi there, stranger" as a greeting.

At this moment, I think about how the weekend before Spring Break, I received a phone call from my great uncle, requesting me to take him to the pharmacy to get some meds he needs. I told him I should have a chance, and when I did, I'd notify him, and we'd schedule the errand. It's now 2 weeks since we last spoke, and I haven't had the time, not the energy to take care of a nearby family member.

It all makes me feel so self-centered and inconsiderate. But I know it's not intentional on my part, and I know he'd forgive me should I ask for it, as he's sensitive enough to say something like, "Oh, don't worry yourself. It's not that important!"

I hope no one feels like I've forgotten them.

- Posted from my iPhone

The Book Blogs - Broken Government

Last night I read through chapter 1 of this book. A few hours later, my disdain for the way Republicans do politics had only increased. The author, John Dean, seemed to only be reaffirming everything I've learned about how the government, when controlled by the GOP runs the show.

I have to admit, I have this base theory that Republicans will trump the needs of the people so the members of their party can earn fat checks from interests groups only interested in making profits, not in serving their customers' needs.

That's my opinion.

Of all the horrendous practices Dean explained that the GOP had done, among them include trying to pass a bill to help cut the deficit. How would they cut it? They'd take away Medicare benefits. Before this law was to be passed, one Medicare benefit was that patients who needed an oxygen would have it paid for for as long as they needed it. But what would this law do? Only pay for 18 months of oxygen. WTF?! Seriously? You want to cut the deficit. I get that. All Americans want that. But put the cut on the sick and homebound? For the party that claims to be so moral, they're nothing but hypocrites!

Without needing to go into more bullshit, courtesy of our beloved Republican party, the next chapter will be about the damage in the Executive Branch, and how it's under repair.

By the way, all this that Dean writes about, it was all during W's reign. That douche.

- Posted from my iPhone

So much to do, and one less hour to do it

I'm so glad Spring Break is here! It's truly one of the pros of being a teacher. I get an entire week of to just do things I want to do, and things I need to do!

Several things need to get done:
-Frank and I need to turn in our census cards to St. Peter, the Apostle Church since we've been going there more and more.
-I need to finish the article on posadas that I was asked to write. Got a LOT done on that already, and still have some more to go. My goal is to be finished with it by Wednesday.
-I need to notate my song "Moving Forward" since I need to teach it to the kids in choir for 5th grade graduation. Last year, when I wrote it, I performed it and accompanied the choir myself. This time, I may actually ask another teacher to accompany for me. And should that happen, it'd be surreal for me...someone else performing MY music. The only time I hear my music played is when I'm the one playing it. No one else knows how to play my stuff.
-I need to write more lesson plans for the next couple of weeks of school.
-I need to call up Bank of America so I can get a better homeowner's insurance policy premium.
-I need to call the Travis County Tax Office to inquire about our property tax increase...blegh.
-I need to organize the storage shelves in the garage.

Several things I *want* to get done:
-I want to see Alice in Wonderland at the Alamo Drafthouse.
-I want to get together with some colleagues to have a night out on the town.
-I want to go with Frank's dad on the Wine Trail. In fact, I get to do that tomorrow, or Wednesday. Who's excited?!
-I want to upload a new video onto YouTube of another one of my songs.
-I want to complete notating "Be Still (and Know)".
-I want to finish reading Broken Government in my effort to fall in love with reading. 

*sigh*

I could go on. I do feel good, though, that today I did hammer out a lot of that posada article. I feel kinda proud of myself for that. I have so much to write about, and for once, I'm stuck in organizing all my thoughts. Right now, it's about 5 pages long, and that's because I have like 6 pictures taking up some major space. Thank God I've got it notated already.

I hope my Spring Break is both relaxing and productive. Right now, it does feel that way. That time change didn't help, though...dammit. But...in all fairness, if I had to choose a time to get used to the time change, it'd be Spring Break. It's a hell of a lot better than having to go to work the next day and losing an hour of sleep in the process. The genius who came up with that needs to be shot...unless someone already took care of it.

A morning like no other

This morning started off like no other morning in my 3+ years with Frank. I woke up around 7:30 am feeling a tap on my back. Wanting to give him a "good morning" hug, I moved closer to him, and then I heard him say "You might need to take me to the hospital. I've got a migraine that hasn't gone away, and I've already taken medication."

Frank suffers from chronic migraines, it's genetic, too. He takes a daily medication to prevent them (Verapamil), but should one come anyway, he takes a migraine pain reliever (Frova) that works 95% of the time. The other 5% of the time, he may need to be hospitalized to make the migraine go away. We met in 2006, and I learned during the first few months that he tended to have a migraine once a year that was bad enough to hospitalize him. The last migraine that was this bad was back in 2005. So, he's gone 5 years without needing to go in.

So we got out of bed, got dressed, and I drove him to the ER at St. David's Hospital, a location he directed me to. I dropped him off, parked, and then went in expecting to find him waiting to be received. To my amazement, he was already sitting in the office behind those sliding partitions answering questions about his pain and his current state. After a few questions, he was led to a bed where the doctor soon came, and a nurse started an IV treatment. After signing some papers, a few trips to the bathroom, and some much needed rest, we were discharged maybe 90 minutes later. We really didn't stay there long!

On our way out, a lady, sitting in the waiting room, barefoot, asked if she could have a ride home. "I've been here all night, needing medication for my fibromyalgia." Coincidentally, I had seen this woman earlier that morning upon arrival. After I had parked my car, upon entering the ER waiting room, she had stopped me outside asking if I had a cigarette I could give her. I told her I didn't have any since I don't smoke. I apologized, and went my way to Frank. So here she was again, asking for help, and looking very pitiful, as if waiting for someone to give her some ounce of human compassion, some mercy. Feeling caught between a rock and a hard place, I both wanted to do the humane thing and come to her aid, but I also wanted to get Frank home from the hospital!

"Where do you live?" I asked.
"I leave by East Riverside and Wickersham, at my son's apartment."
"Oh, I know where that is. Well, I can call a cab for you."
"I don't have any money."
"I have some cash I can give you."

I opened my phone and was about to start dialing 411 to find a cab company, until I thought to myself, As nervous as this makes me, giving a stranger a ride, taking her myself would be the easiest way to go...and it's actually on our way home. Turning to Frank, I asked him in Spanish (assuming she wouldn't understand) "Do you have a problem if we take her with us?"
"Nope."
I looked at her. "We'll take you home, ma'am."

She followed us to our car, and I had the most awkward 10 minutes in my car I think I've ever had. The woman didn't know where we were going, since she thought we were downtown. Hardly. She was from Oregon and was only staying with her son for a few days. He couldn't come to get her because he was waiting for a mechanic to show up to fix his broken-down vehicle. Nearing the apartment complex, she went further in her request for charity asking for some money for a meal.

God works in *mysterious* ways.

This past weekend, I had gone downtown with some friends and pulled out some cash from the ATM. I still had some left over (and I seldom carry cash; I don't like to) so upon arriving, I gave her some money.

We arrived home, and Frank went back to sleep since his high dosage of Benadryl was still in his system, knocking him out for about another 2-3 hours. 

What. a. morning!