Even though it means getting up at the literal crack of dawn, I'm very fortunate each year to be able to participate in the annual Stuff the Bus event for Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin.
If you've never stopped down to the Pick 'N Save on 111th & Greenfield in 'Stallis on the day before Thanksgiving, I highly recommend it. Even though, I was formerly against Christmas music before Thanksgiving, I make the exception as the holiday cheer that 99.1 The Mix pumps into the parking lot all day is contagious. Said cheer is of course helped by the generosity of the community. People drive from homes and office parks from all over the metro region to donate. My workplace did a food drive this year and I have to say after collecting it today for tomorrow's delivery, I'm so proud of the selflessness of my co-workers!
As anyone who has visited Google today knows, it's Mahatma Gandhi's 140th birthday. Please take the time to reflect this evening (or this weekend) on Mr. Gandhi's most well-known, oft-quoted, but rarely followed words of wisdom:
BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE IN THE WORLD.
Simple advice that we all should follow in order to make our own communities better.
I struggle with implementing this quote in my life as well. The picture above was taken by me, in India, at the site of Gandhi's assassination (Gandhi Smriti in New Delhi). While this museum was tranquil and set in a beautiful, quiet neighborhood, the majority of my trip exposed me to the worst abject poverty I've ever witnessed. Months later, in the comforts of my first world lifestyle, those images seem to have faded and combined with those I only view in documentaries or read about. I should be driven to act, but yet, acting is overwhelming. However, I do know that I can make a difference on a local level and I try my best to keep involved.
Others ask me why I'm so overinvolved, but then I look to a legacy great human beings and feel that there's so much more I can do.
Certainly, unless you've been living under a rock, you're aware of the controversy stirred up by Miss California's answer to Perez Hilton's question during the Miss USA pageant last weekend.
I am not a beauty pageant viewer (I used to watch for the trainwreck effect, but stopped even that), but I do understand that thousands of people are. Even though I am of the general opinion that beauty queens are shallow idiots, I do understand there's a segment of the population that looks to them as role models. In that respect, I don't believe they should behave as ignorant twats.
While the bulk of the controversy focuses on the overall point that Miss Cali publicly stated that she believes marriage should be between a man and a woman, the way she answered the question was a big WTF for me. A couple of questions:
What the flip is "opposite marriage"?
In what alternate reality are Americans able to choose same-sex marriage?
With her "no offense to anyone" she clearly offended everyone. Even if I agreed with her I'd be pissed that someone chose to be the "opposite" of eloquent when making that point. If I was really right-wing I'd be freaking out that somehow there are equal rights and I was under a rock for that decision.
Of course, I completely disagree with her and watching follow up coverage, I can't even believe the arguments the anti-equal rights folks are making. One talk radio jackass said "well 97% of Americans are straight." HUH?!? The same guy also compared gay marriage to keeping boy scouts and girl scouts separate. I think the phrase WTF was invented for people like that.
Here's the inspiration part. Love him or hate him, I have to commend Hilton himself for sticking to his guns and raising awareness about equal rights via his powerful media presence. Yes, he posted some emotional responses initially, but can you blame him? Honestly, I feel like this would be if in the '60s an African-American judge asked a contestant if it would be okay for him to marry his white girlfriend and the contestant was like "um, nope, sorry dude, not what I believe." Anyway, despite the namecalling, Hilton is bringing the discussion to the dinner tables of many demographics. And beyond his celebrity gossip, he's been posting incredibly moving motivational quotes regarding equal rights on his site. How can anyone with half a brain read these and not realize that this is not about gay or straight, but about equality?
"The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."- Martin Luther King, Jr.
"Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals."- Martin Luther King, Jr.
Concurrent to the bigotry of Miss CA, another right-wing group has created a scare-video called "Gathering the Storm" (I refuse to link to that crap). A lot of hilarious spoofs have popped up about it, but the one I posted below is much more poignant. Watching this, watching people who truly love one another, their children, their parents, etc., people who are just like you or me, but who happen to be compatible with someone with the same "special parts"--how the hell can you tell me that they should not have equal rights under the law of the land?
I have been single for six months now. I've had two failed long-term "opposite" relationships. If I were only as lucky as a happy gay couple to find someone that truly loved me and wanted to spend the rest of (in my case) his life with me!
Yes, there may be Bible passages that allude to "lying with a man" being wrong. But there are also passages that say I can't go to church while on my period.
At the end of the day, I know that my Jesus teaches a message of love and tolerance. And I'm okay with that, and I think He is too.
I still don't think I've fully grasped the significance of what is about to occur in this country.
Oh trust me, I understand, it's just something I don't feel I can summarize it eloquently enough.
There's just so much that I'm processing right now. Since November I attended the most significant event of my life, I've embarked on a journey of personal reflection on peace and justice. I haven't really blogged it out, but it's swelling and moshing around in my brain. The election, the trip to India, visiting the Gandhi memorials, traveling to Sarnath, reading Fr. John Dear's autobiography A Persistent Peace, paying attention to the causes of other local bloggers, getting angry about Prop 8, seeing Milk yesterday--it's been a lot to digest. And I'm not sure where I'm going with any of it.
But I do know that I am going to cry tomorrow.
Bawl like a baby. My eyes are welling up just thinking about the momentousness of it all.
I realize that Barack Obama is just one man. I realize that he has flaws. I realize that today's political environment may not allow for the sweeping reforms of another FDR, or even programs like JFK proposed.
But I also realize that he is the physical representation of what so many people fought and died for.
That is what I feel so blessed to see in my lifetime. I can't even fathom what people in my parents and grandparents' generation who actually witnessed the birth and execution of the civil rights movement are feeling.
No matter what occurs in the next four or eight years, we are light years ahead of where we were four or eight years ago.
Those that know me personally know I can be a bit, well, biting. I have a keen sense of wit and sometimes it doesn't come out in the kindest of ways. I am not a mean person, but I don't think when folks describe me that "nice" is one of the adjectives that comes to mind.
Thus, it may come as a bit of a surprise that one of my favorite blogs of the year is called Operation NICE. I first heard of this site through Broadway Paper's blog. It truly is inspirational for even the hardest of hearts. Started by a graphic designer in Philly, the blog basically encourages people to be nice to one another. Two of its great features are nice testimonials (a lot of great random acts of kindness) and nice assignments (encouraging the readers to go out and spread the love).
This week's assignment is pretty cool and an easy way for Scrooges like me to get started on the homework. All you have to do is leave a comment on what charity the blogger, Melissa, should donate too. Easy as pie!
Beyond doing that though, I highly recommend adding Operation Nice to your RSS feed. Even on your crummiest days it can bring a smile.
After a five-day sit-in at a Chicago window and door factory, workers declared victory as the Bank of America decided to extend credit to Republic Windows and Doors.
The factory was slated to close when the Bank of America refused to continue credit to Republic Windows and Doors, a manufacturer of energy-efficient doors and windows, which would have not only put 300 people out of work and the benefits (including health care) that went along with it, but denied the workers the compensation and earned vacation and severance to which they were entitled. This is despite Bank of America having received millions of dollars in the financial bailout for the exact purpose of being able to give loans and credits to businesses. Since the bailout was highly unregulated, however, what many banks are choosing to do with their money is to simply sit on it, and are refusing to give small businesses credit at the cost, in this case, of hundreds of working-class jobs. The workers, however, who were part of the United Electrical Workers Union, occupied the factory and refused to leave until their demands were met.
The sit-in took the hasty bailout to task, got the workers what they wanted, and the entire process was peaceful.
Another success occurred here locally. A few months ago The Walnut Way Conservation Corp. held a vigil to protest a proposed Church's Chicken going into a neighborhood oversaturated with fast food, especially of the fried chicken variety. The group proposed soliciting a vendor offering healthier options to a long-empty space in the central city. The city council, feeling that it was more important to get tax revenue from the property than take the opportunity to combat a root cause of greater social ills (er, I mean "replace an empty building with a viable business, eliminate blight and bring more jobs"), approved the lease for Church's.
Yesterday the franchise group hoping to open the restaurant pulled out of the deal. Although they cited lease-limits as their reasoning, one can imagine that they were concerned about further action -- including an organized boycott -- by Walnut Way.
Especially as this happened in an area plagued by violence and despair, it's lovely to see peaceful community organizing helping that activism and hopefulness push forward.
Gotta run to spin class, but put it on your radar that today is International Human Rights Day. There's also a massive nationwide Prop 8 protest going on called Day Without A Gay, modeled after a program immigrant rights activists created a few years ago.
More power to those participating in protests today. I will be grinding it out at the gym and work, as per usual, but I'll certainly post some reflections on these causes tonight.
I guess forcing myself to blog does have it's upside. I'm finding myself sucked into the "scene" as it were. I suppose I always do have something to say and if my real friends are sick of listening to me, at least I can write it all out.
At any rate, three very cool things happened today:
I got a comment in response to my Daily Inspiration post from yesterday about the Gitmo lawyer and Fr. John Dear. It was from an employee of Loyola Press offering me a copy of Fr. Dear's autobiography A Persistent Peace. I am very excited to read this book and report back via this blog. It was also great to correspond with a woman who has similar views on social justice as I do. She also sent me a link to Fr. Dear's advent homily, which emphasizes simplifying your life this holiday season and not getting sucked into consumerism.
I received a shoutout from a local blogger who I highly respect, James Rowen of The Political Environment. I was happy to post the props regarding the United Way/Stuff the Bus successes. There's always so much negative about this town, we really need to celebrate the positives. Incidentally, Mr. Rowen posts a lot of fantastic in-depth stories on the issues of transit and planning the greater Milwaukee-area (as does Urban Milwaukee). Unfortunately I do have to keep my opinions checked on some of those. I love my day job way too much to risk it by running my mouth in the blogosphere.
After ready the story that inspired today's Daily Inspiration post about the holiday dinner, I emailed another one of my favorite bloggers, Melissa at Operation NICE. She agreed that it would be a perfect tale for her blog and hopefully it will be up there soon to spread to her wide audience. I found that blog through the Broadway Paper blog earlier this year and it's one of those links I've been glad to have. For those who know me (and I'm sure those who read this blog somewhat often), I am a fairly cynical person, but Operation NICE really chips away at the heart of stone. Almost as much as baby animals.
I know the shoutout drove a lot of solid traffic to this blog. As always I really appreciate your feedback in the comments section. Either start a dialogue or let me know what Wisconsin stuff you'd like to hear my opinion on.
Today OnMilwaukee.com had up a blog that melted my frozen (literally, it's like 4 degrees here) heart. Their headline says it best: Craigslist post juices up faith in humanity. Read the whole post over there, but basically a woman is anonymously giving away Christmas dinner from a post on Craiglist to a family really in need. She does not want her identity revealed, but is doing it because she's known hard times in the past and is grateful for all that she has.
What inspirational true stories have you heard this holiday season? Is the meaning of these types of things heightened because of the troubled economy?
I've mentioned in this blog previously how I'm a "Cafeteria Catholic." Without going too much into the tangled web of my spirituality, let's just say I'm one of millions out there who struggles with being a liberal and being a Roman Catholic. Stories like priest denying communion to or encouraging confession for Obama supporters and reports of the Vatican aligning itself with rogue nations to block a UN resolution on decriminalizing homosexuality, make it damn hard to "keep the faith" as it were.
I've definitely had friends try and persuade me to "switch teams" to "Catholic-Lite" Episcopalianism, to other forms of established Protestantism, even to Unitarianism. But being of Irish-Catholic descent I view my Catholicism almost like Judaism (or I suppose (just to rile some folks up) like gender, sexual orientation or skin color), as something you are born with.
I didn't even grow up in an overtly Catholic household, my mom was raised hardcore in the church and didn't want the same for her kids. However, the core beliefs, values and traditions were still there. When I entered Catholic school in 9th grade I didn't really have that hard of time adjusting. In fact, I loved Jesuit education so much that I decided to continue that path in college.
I love approaching social justice through intellectualism and cultural pursuits. I am so grateful that I had eight years of education encouraging me to challenge what was going on around me. I'm glad I went to two schools that required Christian Service and Service Learning. At the same time these were schools with only limited required Masses and well-rounded theology programs.
I've only really ever experienced a handful of times in the Church were I blatantly disagreed. And you know what? Lightning didn't come down and strike me for doing so. Also I was allowed to express my dissenting opinion, as long as I had a solid argument. At any rate, it's my personal experiences that keep me Catholic, not the negative stories that I know are true.
What does this rambling have to do with my daily inspiration?
Lo and behold, a positive story in the news about a Guantanomo Bay military prosecutor, Darrel Vandeveld, who began to struggle with the moral and ethical issues he continuously faced in his job. He ended up emailing Jesuit Peace Activist, John Dear, who encouraged him to quit.
It also seems very clear that he kept his faith and the law separate (i.e. he was prosecuting Gitmo detainees because they were "non-Christian"), but his faith helped him discern how to deal with the injustices of the situation. I am in no way arguing that someone of a different faith, or someone who has no faith at all, would not come to the same conclusion merely as a human being with a soul. However, for me as a Catholic it is very encouraging to read a positive report like this instead of all of the other stuff that discourages me.
Thanks Fr. Dear and Mr. Vandeveld for throwing me a bone of faith!
Yesterday I got the best email, completely out of the blue.
Let's rewind the clock shall we? Well over a year ago (September 7, 2007 to be exact, always good to have an event to recall the date...in this case it was the Cedar BlockWeird Science event.), my friend's sister was in town from San Francisco with her girlfriend. As I remember, they'd both just graduated from college and were in that career search mode.
That was still when I was miserable at my former job and at the time considering my options for a westward move to the Bay Area. After seeing plenty of jobs come across the Young Non-Profit Professionals Network-Milwaukee Chapter listserv, I joined the San Francisco YNPN list as well. Even after I found my wonderful current job, I remained on the list, because I find it interesting to see what's going on in the sector in other cities (yeah, I'm a nerd).
Anyway, some months after the science fair I saw a job come across the SF listserv that sounded perfect for my friend's sister's girlfriend (FSGF) (who did not see Ferris pass out at 31 flavors last night), based on the brief conversation we'd had that evening. I forwarded to my friend to pass along. I think a few months later he'd mentioned that she had been interviewing, but that was the last I'd heard of it, until yesterday.
Yesterday I got the best email, completely out of the blue.
It was from FSGF thanking me for pointing her in the direction of that job. Some highlights...
...I wanted to let you know that when you passed along that job description i decided to apply for it and after 2 months of interviews i finally got it. i've been working there ever since july of this year and it's been the most amazing step in my career...
...the funny thing is, before you had sent that job posting i had already heard of [the organization] and i had just finished up going to one of their coach trainings. after the training ended, the two trainers asked me if i was interested in possibly working with them to do trainings. that was an entirely different job opportunity but once you passed along the other job description i was so intrigued and it ended up being the dream job for me.
i had to write you and thank you for being so thoughtful to pass that along. i can't imagine not having found this job!!!!
The email seriously made my month. Being the type of person who is always trying to make connections, I was totally happy to have passed that job along through the grapevine. If someone talks to me about something they are passionate about and I run into something that fits that passion down the line, even if I only met them briefly, I want to make that connection. Why? Because I'd want someone to do that for me.
You can't create change by remaining in your own little world.
So, to FSGF, you're welcome. It was my pleasure to send it along. And if it took two minutes for me to read an email, forward it and write a quick note as to why I was doing so, in order for you to have an "amazing step in your career." Those two minutes were totally worth it. Plus, it sounds like you're working for an incredible organization. Best of luck!
****
Today, I got another great email as well. I need to not check my inbox without a ball of tissues.
This one was from my mom who learned how to read blogs this year (and use gmail and I think reader -- good job Mom!). She's been reading mine this week and all of my consternation about finding money to cover my shots.
Well, let's just say my HMOm is covering what my HMO isn't -- 80% of the cost.
I could not be more grateful. Or humbled.
She said it was because I never ask for money, I always try to find a way to make it work. This is true and this is why I'm in credit card debt, while I know a few other people my age who just go to the Bank of Mom & Dad.
Apparently the money came from the "Grampy" fund. So thanks to my crotchety late grandfather, who I think may have gone to India during WWII. He went to China, but maybe India too? Regardless, I'm sure the army paid for his immunizations.
At any rate, HMOm insured her way into a good nursing home one day. Or at least insured that her daughter will not bring some tropical disease to the dinner table when she visits in 2009.
Like many others around the country, my heart goes out to those in California whose right to marriage has been stripped out from under them. People who thought after so many years of fighting for their civil rights that they were done fighting and could live freely like their straight counterparts. People who were created by the same God their opposition claimed solely for themselves.
I thank that God everyday that I was raised in a tolerant household. I was raised to believe that if a man and man or woman and a woman wanted to get married, if they were in love it was no different than any other ceremony of that kind. Not twenty years before my parents' friends, a white woman and a black man, got married in the '80s, their marriage would have been considered perverse and illegal by some states. Why must we throw hate into the mix with love?
It sickens me that on the same night America can overcome so much of its dirty past and elect a black president, Californians can so blatantly deny its citizens rights just because of the way they were born.
I am proud to be part of a generation that accepts differences. I only wish more of us had the courage to create a greater social change at the voting booth.
Luckily, there are folks around the country who have been trying to create change. The LA Times has created a robust, searchable database of individuals who both supported and opposed Prop 8. You can search by state, so I did that for Wisconsin.
It warms my heart that 93 people in Wisconsin gave money ($26,445) to oppose Prop 8. That's beyond wonderful. I thank each and every one of them and you can look up more info in the database above. If you know any of them, please give them a huge hug and props from me.
For now, thank you to:
ALEXANDRA LYON
ANDREW MILES
BARBARA LEVIN
BERNARD FRIEDLANDER
BETH BINHAMMER
BETHANNE YEAGER
BETHANY ORDAZ
BEVERLY PHILLIPS
BRETT GOODWIN
BRIAN CUMMINS
BRUCE HARVILLE
CARLA DRAPER
CAROL FEUERSTEIN
CAROL GLASER
CAROL LASKOWSKI
CATHERINE WATKINS
CHAD WEGE
CHARLES F. SOMMERS
CHARLES LEDUC
CHERI BRICCO
CHESTER DAXE
CRAIG KIMBALL
DALE NEWMAN
DANIEL SCHMIDT
DAVID BAUGH
DAVID SCHWAKE
DAVID WELLS
DE ETTE TOMLINSON
ELI JUDGE
EVELYN GILDRIE-VOYLES
GEORGETTE WONDERS
GREG BROWN
HONA LEE HARRINGTON
JACOB FRICK
JANET OLSEN
JEFF BITGOOD
JEFFREY EVANS
JEFFREY SCHAUB
JESS BENSON
JESSE C. ANDERSON
JIMMY OWEN
JOHN BECKER
JOHN HNILICKA
JON KEEVIL
JOSE SENTMANAT
JOSEPH VARGA
KAREN CHRISTIANSON
KATE BRONDINO
KATHLEEN DOLAN
KATHLEEN GRAHAM
KEITH SPRUCE
KEVIN FLAHERTY
KIRK DOW
LAURA GENNE
LAUREN BROWN
LAWRENCE NASH
LINDA WARE
LOIS SWANSON
MARY C. FONS
MARY WAITROVICH
MITCHELL CONKLIN
MORTON GERNSBACHER
MYRON WOJTOWYCZ
NANCY RAFFETTO
PATRICK FLAHENTY
PAUL PATENAUDE
PAULA KEDZIE
PHIL SCARR
RAJIV BHAT
RAYMOND KONZ-KRZYMINSKI
RICHARD MYERS
ROBERT BRUCKERT
ROBERT CORRIS
ROBERT HAMAN
ROBERT POEHLING
RONALD MERSHART
RORY METCALF
SAMUEL YORK
SARA OSWALD
SHARON GRUTZMACHER
STEPHEN KANTROWITZ
STEPHEN P BERG
STEVE CHADDERDON
STEVEN ZIMMERMAN
STEVEN-JAMES MILLER-BALISTRERI
SUSAN CHRISTENSEN
SUSAN PANGER
SUZANNE FORTIER
THOMAS WILMS
TODD PEISSIG
WILLIAM MORSE
WILMA LUGER
ZACHARY STRUYK
for standing up against HATE. The world needs more people like you.
I'll fully admit that my day didn't begin until about 3:45 p.m. following the Packers truly disappointing loss to the Minnesota Vikings. I grew up in a football household and boyfriend is a die-hard sports fan, so I find sports do impact part of my scheduling.
Did I get any gratification sitting on my arse for several hours today? When your team loses you feel like you just wasted a chunk of your afternoon. That may be why I was so inspired by this twitter post from Rachel Maddow (or her staff, you never know) regarding a STUDENT athlete at Florida State.
To summarize with the story highlights from the article:
Myron Rolle, who has a 3.75 GPA in pre-med, was named a Rhodes Scholar finalist
Rolle has to be in Birmingham on Nov. 22; FSU plays at Maryland on the same day
If the game is at night, FSU will petition the NCAA to fly him in for second half
Anyway, read the story it really will melt your jaded sportsy heart.
