A note from my nephew...
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Also included was a valentine...
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And what I wrote on the back...
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What an awesome idea.
Sending the valentine off in the mail to
Miss Nottingham's class tomorrow.
Monday, February 4, 2013
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Soapbox
Excuse me while I step atop my soapbox.
Conservatives (I was going to say Mitt Romney and all of his conservative friends, but honestly Mitt changes his stance on issues so fast I have no idea what he even stands for anymore) say they want minimal government. They say they want the government out of their lives. They say we shouldn't be forced to have healthcare. They say the government shouldn't give handouts. They say the government shouldn't force wealthy Americans to pay their fair share because somehow the wealthier the wealthy get the better off the poor will eventually become (because, you know, the wealthy are going to spend all of their wealth on things that are made in China therefore helping the poor in this country...makes a whole lot of sense, right?).
However, they also want to deny access to birth control. They want to deny members of our so-called free society the right to marry. They want to deny parents the right to parent in their own home by blocking porn (maybe they forgot that not all that long ago they were complaining that Michelle Obama was trying to take over their roles as parents by suggesting they should feed their children fruits and veggies instead of Twinkies?). They also want to make it increasingly more difficult for the poor, the elderly, and minorities to vote.
So here's the thing. If you want to play the "small government" card, if you want to call yourself a conservative, do it! But that will also mean you will need to kindly remove yourself from my bedroom, my medicine cabinet, and my vagina. You will need to refrain from dictating what filters I need to have on my computer. And while you're at it, you should probably stop trying to shrink programs that help (minimally) sustain and support people while growing programs that discriminate.
Either be conservative or don't. But don't try to remove government from the places you don't want it while inserting it places where it seems to fit some crazy moral code you have created where one cell is considered human and must be protected at all costs while full-grown humans are cast aside, discriminated against, and denied basic human rights.
Conservatives (I was going to say Mitt Romney and all of his conservative friends, but honestly Mitt changes his stance on issues so fast I have no idea what he even stands for anymore) say they want minimal government. They say they want the government out of their lives. They say we shouldn't be forced to have healthcare. They say the government shouldn't give handouts. They say the government shouldn't force wealthy Americans to pay their fair share because somehow the wealthier the wealthy get the better off the poor will eventually become (because, you know, the wealthy are going to spend all of their wealth on things that are made in China therefore helping the poor in this country...makes a whole lot of sense, right?).
However, they also want to deny access to birth control. They want to deny members of our so-called free society the right to marry. They want to deny parents the right to parent in their own home by blocking porn (maybe they forgot that not all that long ago they were complaining that Michelle Obama was trying to take over their roles as parents by suggesting they should feed their children fruits and veggies instead of Twinkies?). They also want to make it increasingly more difficult for the poor, the elderly, and minorities to vote.
So here's the thing. If you want to play the "small government" card, if you want to call yourself a conservative, do it! But that will also mean you will need to kindly remove yourself from my bedroom, my medicine cabinet, and my vagina. You will need to refrain from dictating what filters I need to have on my computer. And while you're at it, you should probably stop trying to shrink programs that help (minimally) sustain and support people while growing programs that discriminate.
Either be conservative or don't. But don't try to remove government from the places you don't want it while inserting it places where it seems to fit some crazy moral code you have created where one cell is considered human and must be protected at all costs while full-grown humans are cast aside, discriminated against, and denied basic human rights.
Now stepping off my soapbox.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
How NOT to recruit volunteers...
A few days ago I received a call from someone for the Barack Obama campaign. Just so you know, I am all about President Obama, I’ll be voting for him, and I have donated to his campaign. At some point in the distant past I MAY have said I was interested in volunteering. But if I did it in the past 6 to 12 months, I don't remember doing so. Anyway, so I get a phone call the other day:
Danette (D): Hello?
Obama Campaign Organizer (O): This is Blah Blah with the Barack Obama campaign. I am the organizer for your district.
D: Oh! Great!
O: Several months ago you said you would like to volunteer. I was wondering if you would like to grab a cup of coffee to talk about volunteering (he also had a short spiel about how important it is that President Obama gets re-elected).
D: Great! I totally agree! But here’s the thing. I’m currently working full time, am just starting my last 5 classes of grad school, and am in an internship. I would LOVE to volunteer for the Obama campaign starting in July but I just can’t help out right now. Is there any way you could call me in July? (just so you know, I was completely serious. I actually would LOVE to volunteer anytime after graduation)
O: Well Danette, there are lots of ways to volunteer that don’t take much time at all. Why don’t we meet for coffee now and we can discuss ways you can be involved that don’t take much time.
D: I really can’t right now. But like I said, in July if you need help with knocking on doors, fundraising, phone calls, or licking envelopes, I’m your girl.
O: But Danette, we need to get organized now. I would love to meet with you for coffee and discuss ways in which you can be involved…
Click. I hung up.
I felt bad doing so, but seriously. If you have someone who is saying they will help out in a couple of months take that for what it is and move on. Don’t be obnoxious and continue to invite someone who doesn’t drink coffee to come meet you for a cup when she already said she doesn’t have time.
Danette (D): Hello?
Obama Campaign Organizer (O): This is Blah Blah with the Barack Obama campaign. I am the organizer for your district.
D: Oh! Great!
O: Several months ago you said you would like to volunteer. I was wondering if you would like to grab a cup of coffee to talk about volunteering (he also had a short spiel about how important it is that President Obama gets re-elected).
D: Great! I totally agree! But here’s the thing. I’m currently working full time, am just starting my last 5 classes of grad school, and am in an internship. I would LOVE to volunteer for the Obama campaign starting in July but I just can’t help out right now. Is there any way you could call me in July? (just so you know, I was completely serious. I actually would LOVE to volunteer anytime after graduation)
O: Well Danette, there are lots of ways to volunteer that don’t take much time at all. Why don’t we meet for coffee now and we can discuss ways you can be involved that don’t take much time.
D: I really can’t right now. But like I said, in July if you need help with knocking on doors, fundraising, phone calls, or licking envelopes, I’m your girl.
O: But Danette, we need to get organized now. I would love to meet with you for coffee and discuss ways in which you can be involved…
Click. I hung up.
I felt bad doing so, but seriously. If you have someone who is saying they will help out in a couple of months take that for what it is and move on. Don’t be obnoxious and continue to invite someone who doesn’t drink coffee to come meet you for a cup when she already said she doesn’t have time.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Reading...
I love to read...pretty much always have. But I haven't really done a very good job over the years of tracking what books I'm reading...at least until a few years ago when I discovered GoodReads. Now I track all of the books I read on there as well as on a spreadsheet (I'm a bit of a spreadsheet fanatic/addict). So as I've been reviewing the books I read in 2011 and choosing the top few, I took a look back at the three previous years too...not that it means anything to anyone, but I thought I'd put my top 3 or 4 from each year here...So here goes...
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Multiple Choice Test - Social Work Style
I miss multiple choice tests. Where you take your number 2 pencil and fill in the circle. Staying completely within the lines of the circle. Where there is always a right answer, no explanation needed. If grad school social work assignments were a multiple choice test it would look like this:
Apples are:
A. Good
B. Tasty
C. Good and Tasty
D. Neither good nor tasty
**Please list your answer below, citing your sources using APA style. Your answer should be 12-15 pages. You should demonstrate your deep understanding of the topic and should incorporate your views, your family's views (going back 12 generations), as well as theories and concepts discussed in class. Use PowerPoints, class notes, small group discussions, textbooks, and 32 outside sources to summarize your learning and insights.
ANSWER:
'C' is the correct choice because of the following eight reasons which I have thoroughly researched. My views on 'c' are as follows: blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and blah. I believe that I feel strongly about 'c' because my mother felt strongly about 'c' and her mother felt strongly about 'c'. There are definitely multi-generational patterns as to our views on apples. I’m not sure what Bowen would say about this, but I’m sure he would be impressed I was able to find the damn (oops, I mean darn) pattern. It is important for me to understand, however, that other families may not see ‘c’ as the correct answer. As a social worker, I am okay with that as each family is the expert of their own experiences, and may view apples in a completely different way than I do. That doesn't make either of us right or wrong. It just means we get to have lots of frank discussions about apples. I am so grateful for the opportunity to answer this question because it helped me not only gain insight into myself and my family, but will also inform my social worker practice and make me a more competent practitioner.
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