My Bit of Earth

Would you "dump the pump" if it meant an hour less sleep?

Today is "Dump the Pump" in Lawrence--an annual day where the local bus system ("the T") is free, in an effort to encourage more people to try riding. 

I thought it might be a fun adventure.  Although we walk and scoot quite a bit, I've never ridden the bus in Lawrence before.  While there's a regular ongoing debate about whether the T is really cost-effective, I certainly support the idea of public transportation in general.  Especially when Sweet Husband and I first moved to Lawrence and hadn't made a lot of friends yet, it was comforting to know that if the car broke down we wouldn't be without other options.  In addition, with gas getting more expensive by the minute, taking the bus every now and then just seems to make sense.

Kind of.

In defense of the T, for people that don't have to juggle between routes (like Sweet Husband) the bus is a really good option.  He could get on at roughly 8:15 a.m. and be at work 5 minutes later. 

On the other hand, for me to get to my carpool drop-off point by 8 a.m., I would have to be at the bus stop around 6:45 a.m.  For reference, I'm rarely even awake yet at that time, and on a normal day it takes about 10 minutes to get to my carpool from my house.  I'm not positive--because Lawrence is really hilly--but I think I could probably walk the distance in less time.

Sleep outweighs most other considerations in my world, especially at that time of the morning, so I will not be dumping the pump today.  But this whole exercise has made me curious.  Is this the norm for public transportation?  I know there are a lot of variables at play, but I'm particularly interested in experiences people have had in places that are of the large town/small city size. (Lawrence is roughly 100,000.)  Do you have to live in a big city to have really convenient public transportation?

(Photo c/o the Lawrence Transit System.)

Wednesday Poll: Right to Sex?

I had another poll ready to go for today, but then I saw this article and had to switch it up (don't worry, the other one will come back next week).  From Slate:

"Bob's family was horrified at the idea that his relationship with Dorothy might have become sexual. At his age, they wouldn't have thought it possible. But when Bob's son walked in and saw his dad's 82-year-old girlfriend performing oral sex on his 95-year-old father last December, incredulity turned into full-blown panic. . . . Because both Bob and Dorothy suffer from dementia, the son assumed that his father didn't fully understand what was going on. And his sputtering cell phone call reporting the scene he'd happened upon would have been funny, the [assisted-living facility] manager said, if the consequences hadn't been so serious. 'He was going, "She had her mouth on my dad's penis! And it's not even clean!"' Bob's son became determined to keep the two apart and asked the facility's staff to ensure that they were never left alone together."

Go read the rest.

For this week's poll:

Do you think it was right of Bob's son to react the way he did?  Do you think people in nursing homes have the right to have sex?  People with dimentia?  What if this was one of your parents?  What if it was your spouse?  What would you want your family to do if you were Bob or Dorothy?  How would your feelings change if the couple was 22 and 35, and both were mentally incompetent? 

Comment and discuss.

Rock Chalk Championship!

Mad, heart-stopping insanity!

And that was just the game.

The paper today said there were 40,000 people downtown last night celebrating, and I, of course, was one.  I didn't really think it could get any more wild and crazy than it was on Saturday, but I was wrong.  And it was the very best kind of wild and crazy--everyone was just happy, happy, happy--even the police officers were good naturedly posing for pictures.

Here are a few bits and pieces from our trip down Massachusetts Street.  I apologize in advance if you get seasick easily; for future National Championships I will try to remember to either dance or take video, not both!  (Here's a little more professional video, although I don't think it's as fun!)

And today, a little welcome home party (of something like 25,000 according to the paper).  It was freezing out, but it was fun!  (Mouse over the pictures and it will tell you what's going on--here's a little more video too.)

Last but not least, before I forget, mucho congrats to Erin, who came in third (after Sweet Husband and I) in the MBE bracket pool.  Sweet Husband will bring your prize--a pretty, pretty pair of earrings--to work tomorrow.  Thanks to everyone who played along with me--it was fun!

Daring Bakers in the Washington Post

This is kind of cool--the Daring Bakers were briefly mentioned in the Washington Post.  If you flip to the second picture in the slideshow there's also a picture from one of my other favorite food blogs--La Tartine Gourmande.  Yay food bloggers!

Wednesday Poll: Fighting Back Against Poor Customer Service

I was watching the news last night when I saw this story, about Mona "the Hammer" Shaw, a little old lady who--when presented with horrible customer service from her phone company--grabbed the aforementioned tool, took it to the phone company's office, and began smashing office equipment.

While I don't know that I can condone such behavior, I have to think about what it must really have taken to get this woman--who has probably hardly had so much as a speeding ticket--to this point. 

For this week's poll:

Ever had customer service that was that bad?  What did you want to do?  What did you actually do?

Comment and discuss.

Wednesday Poll: Breast Fest

Although you may not yet know it, at 10 a.m. today several bloggers and moms will be taking part in the Great Virtual Breast Fest, posting pictures and videos on the web of themselves breastfeeding.  The Fest was organized by two "mama vigilantes" after it became known that Facebook is deleting pictures of nursing mothers--this despite the fact that Facebook apparently has actual harmful fish to fry, such as pro-anorexia groups and pedophiles using their service to seek victims.  (See more info here, an article from the Sydney Herald here, and the original deleted picture that seems to have started it all--which doesn't show any breast as far as I can see--here.)

I have (many) thoughts and theories, but in the grand Wednesday Poll tradition I'm going to shut-up and give you all a chance first.

For this week's poll:

Should Facebook be deleting pictures of breastfeeding mothers?  Is a breast always a sexual body part regardless of the context?  Any thoughts on breastfeeding in public in general?  And lastly (especially if you think the pictures are OK) would you post a picture on the internet of yourself breastfeeding?

Comment and discuss.

Wednesday Poll: Censored?

In honor of banned books week....

The other day I was talking with a few friends about the adult "classic" books we read at what now seem like shockingly young ages--Wuthering Heights at 9, The Catcher in the Rye at 8.  The conversation predictably turned to whether kids should be reading such books, and then to broader topics of censorship of books in general. 

For three girls Midwestern girls, our experiences were surprisingly different.  Nice Friend One remembered actual school sponsored book burnings.  Nice Friend Two joked that she had watched an episode of "Family Ties" where a book one of the kids wanted to read was banned by their school, "so it was sort of like it happened" to her.  My own experiences (which I will share after allowing you all to comment a bit) were somewhere in between.

So for this week's poll:

What are your experiences with censorship, of books or otherwise?  And if you feel comfortable saying (since I noted it above) what general area of the country are you in?  For a bonus point, check out the most frequently challenged books of 2006 or the most challenged books between 1990 and 2000--which one surprises you most? 

Comment and discuss.

Wednesday Poll: The Bad Men?

(I feel like I have to include a disclaimer here to warn you this is not your typical warm-fuzzy Wednesday poll.  But it is something that really got me thinking, and I hope it will do the same for you....)

I am a faithful reader of slate.com's "Dear Prudence" column.  I don't always agree with the author, Emily Yoffe, but I do often find what she has to say thought provoking.  For example, in last week's column, she printed this letter:

Dear Prudence,
My younger, 13-year-old sister is having a slumber party for her birthday, and invited three or so of her 13- to 14-year-old girlfriends to our house. Shortly after, "Sara's" mother suggested that my sister's party should be held at "Tammy's" house. Why? Because Tammy has a single mother. Sara's mother is concerned that my father will be in his house during the festivities. There is no reason to be concerned about my father doing anything inappropriate to any of the girls (all the parents have met each other), but she is just uncomfortable about the idea of her daughter sleeping in the same house with another nonfamily man. She has also convinced the other parents that a change of venue would be a good idea. Although Tammy's mother is willing to host the event, my family is offended that the situation has come to this. Since when is it a crime to have a happy two-parent household? Should we cancel the event altogether, at my sister's expense? Ask my dad to go on a mini vacation? Go along with the venue change? Tell this lady she is overreacting?

—Befuddled

The Only Completely Consistent People Are the Dead*

I've had not a little internal conflict this past month over the Michael Vick saga.

On the one hand, I have a lot of trouble seeing someone who tortures and kills animals as a fellow human being.

On the other, I am a huge fan, not only of the letter of the law regarding due process, but of the spirit of the law as well.  I despise the way the media--and the public in general--often have people sentenced on mere accusation.  I hate the way "charges filed" has come to mean "guilty" in the court of public opinion.  As such (although, again, I know this is not something that is included in the "letter" of due process), I don't much care for the idea of people losing their jobs (or being suspended, or what-have-you) over just accusations or charges.  I need a conviction thank-you-very-much.

With all that being said, is it bad that a week ago I was defending the guy, or rather, arguing that people should not be signing petitions urging he be fired from the NFL; but now that he's plead out, I'm kind of hoping he meets a cell block of the biggest, ugliest dog-lovers in the prison system?  Does that make me too terribly inconsistent?

(*so sayeth Aldous Huxley)

Today...

...the most famous critter in my hometown seems to be this fellow, who was featured on the MSN "Week In Pictures".  (Click to make it bigger.)  Go figure.

Try And Wrap Your Ethical Noodle Around This One

At the behest of her parents, Ashley, a 9-year-old girl with the mentality of an infant, had her breasts and uterus removed and is receiving hormone therapy that will keep her body smaller.  According to a blog written by her parents, they decided to pursue what they're calling the "Ashley Treatment" for several reasons related to Ashley's health and to being able to care for her better. 

Killing the Monster Under the Bed

Vacationing at home in my sweats this week, watching too much TV--I flipped past CNN and heard that they suspect Saddam Hussein will be executed any time now.  It kind of caught me off guard.  Knowing what the time lines are for executions in the U.S., I assumed it would take them much, much longer.

It's hard to know what to think.  I remember in the first Gulf War when I first learned who Saddam Hussein even was.  I remember the editorial cartoons--a crazed man with huge, blood-shot eyes, and wild hair.  I was in 4th grade, and--although I don't think it was intentional--the adults around me at that time made him out to be a sort-of bogeyman.  He was a horrible, bad person, but I shouldn't worry about him much because he was far away and couldn't get me. 

Contrast that to some of the latest images, a sad, old, broken-down man--almost grandfatherly-looking.  I know what evil he brought to the world, how merciless he was to his victims; and I know that at this point there's not much else that can be done with him besides execution--alive he'd always inspire fear, at the very least.  But simultaneously, knowing that he's facing the end very soon now, I can't help but pity him.

Brave Ladies

Two rays of sunshine on a dark, misty day . . . .

First, have a read about Goldie the Airdale, a gorgeous girl who survived on her own for two years in the wild and spent part of that time unable to use her hind legs.  She's now been rescued and is getting the care she needs to get well.  (Maybe it's because she looks so much like Moe, but I just want to give her big cuddles and a steak.)  You can say many things about terriers, but you can't say they lack courage.

Second, a story about female rescuers in Islamic countries.  Although, it's heartbreaking to me that there are men that would rather see their female relatives die than be touched by a strange man, it's beyond cool that there are women who are learning to help themselves and other women to avoid that choice being made.  The last paragraph says it all:

“There was such a sense of freedom at the beginning, when I rappelled off a mountain on ropes,” says Alam. “It felt like flying. For the first time, I felt independent. Then I saw my mother-in-law was clapping for me. She told everyone, ‘My son’s wife is very different from other women. She is very brave.’ I felt so proud to be able to do this work, to know I can save lives."