All Disney, All the Time

Upon hearing the news that Disney is buying Marvel Entertainment, my children, nieces and nephew expressed deep concern about the merger. After all, they said, Disney is about princesses, fairy tales and happy endings and Marvel is about superheroes and the fight for good and evil in the world; Disney will ruin our superheroes. I personally think that Disney will now own too much control of the children's media market; they already own Pixar, a leading producer of children's animated movies.

And, if anyone has really sat down to watch Disney Channel with their children, and they can get past the numbing, dumbed-down shows, they will soon notice that there are no commercials for outside products; it is all Disney, all the time. The "commercial breaks" are used to promote Disney products, Disney movies and Disney shows in addition to promoting the stars of those shows in music videos and upcoming movies.

And, Disney Channel has perfected the art of sucking children in; they are relentless in using teasers to promote the next scheduled show. Furthermore, they go to one of their "commercial breaks" two minutes before the end of the current show so that they can immediately segue into the next show without going to commercial. Their method is very scientific.

Parents should be very careful when their children watch Disney but then again, many parents seem to indulge their child's love of all things Disney and are willing to pay for it. Hannah Montana concert tickets were recently being scalped for hundreds of dollars at a pop. A friend of mine in Pennsylvania just told me that her neighbor has already gone to the guidance counselor at school, before the new school year has even started, to get an excused absence for her child for one week to go to Walt Disney World in Orlando.

Though many believe that no childhood is complete without a trip (and a very expensive trip in my opinion) to a Disney theme park, this family has gone many times before and the counselor told the mother that middle school children generally suffer grade loss when they miss a week of school. This mother thinks it is OK for her middle school child's grades to suffer for a trip to Disney World. There you have it.

Where's the Beach?

Today my jet-setting little brother came in from Germany, where he is currently residing, for a 10 day visit to the good old USA. Well, he does not think of it as good nor old, comparatively speaking. Though he is here for a wedding, he will, of course, be doing the rounds. My turn will be this weekend. The whole family, well those who are residing in New York, will be descending upon Long Island for a giant beach day.

Unfortunately, after hurricane Bill churned up the Atlantic ocean last weekend, there is not much beach left. It is interesting that my area of the south shore did not get one speck of rain but the higher tide and more powerful waves brought the water in, flooding all of the area beaches and submerging all of the sand. Erosion has been a major problem for Long Island beaches over the last few years and Bill did its number, the retreat of the ocean claimed another 25 yards of sand/beach. This undid millions of dollars of dredging efforts by the Army Corps of Engineers in recent years to combat erosion and shore up the beaches.

Today was the first time I'd been to the beach since Bill. I did a quick jaunt to Smith Point, which I may have mentioned is (was?) on my least favorite beach list, for an afternoon dip. First, I must admit that Smith Point has moved up a notch perhaps even redeeming itself. After all, it is nice and close, is an ocean beach and costs me only $5 to park (with my Suffolk County Green Key pass purchased for $24 and is good for 3 years.) What is not to like? Plenty. Though most of my dislike stems from the fact that I am not a big crowd person so I do not appreciate the smoking, the cursing, the amount of garbage carelessly left, the flagrant disregard for nature and my biggest pet peeve, the people who bring their gear in supermarket plastic bags which they then leave on the beach. OK, I will stop complaining now.

Anyhow, a few weeks ago, I was introduced to another side of the beach where there was a fraction of the people. There are no lifeguards on this side but you still have access to all of the amenities coupled with a quiet, idyllic beach outing which cast Smith Point in a whole new light for me. Proximity is useful and a 20 minute drive is a 20 minute drive so Smith Point is back on my list of destinations and, though sand and water quality are not quite of the ilk of beaches further east, that is OK.

Now that I have completely digressed, the sad part is that the lovely beach recently revealed to me is now a figment of its former self. Now, tropical storm Danny is coming this weekend. We will see.

A Moment of Silence

A moment of silence in in order for Senator Edward Kennedy who died today at the age of 77 due to a brain tumor that was diagnosed last year. Massachusetts has lost a tireless crusader and statesman. There will be a gazillion tributes and eulogies so I will skip all of the details and instead stop to acknowledge a few other notable deaths over the last few weeks. Sometimes I try to make note of those who made an impression on my world; people in my personal history book.

John Hughes, filmmaker who encapsulated the 1980s of my youth in film and who had a great sense of comedy. My kids are now fans of his movies because they were innocent, fun and engaging.

Les Paul, legendary guitar inventor and player. If you play guitar then you already appreciate his mastery.

Dominick Dunne, journalist, raconteur and celebrity voyeur. I loved his stories in Vanity Fair. He also played a large role in turning celebrity criminal trials into a spectator sport.

All will be missed and all definitely remind me of my mortality. Live on and try to enjoy life, you only have the one.

After All, What Has Changed?

I suppose I should get something off of my chest. It is not your typical unburdening by any stretch. I am just becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the re-surged exuberance on Wall Street. It seems the view from the ivory tower is a lot different from what I'm seeing here on the ground. While the bonuses flow once again and bullish investors happily drive up the indices, I am truly concerned for the rest of us. We must remember that all of our money is in the market, pensions, retirement savings, college savings, institutional investments, everything.

Now that billions of taxpayer dollars has been poured into the stock market to stabilize it, instead of gratitude and conciliation on the part of financial institutions and investors, what we are left with is a blatant manipulation of the artificial comfort zone that the taxpayer was asked to create. I would expect that the market should make some gains once it separates the wheat from the chaff; there should still be some companies with good fundamentals even in a down market. But, a market that has risen disproportionally on the premise that the worsening of things has slowed down makes me very uncomfortable. A market should rise on value and fundamentals. If it keeps rising on polished bad news, how are we all to gauge our investments? We don't get to short the market and do all that fancy computer trading where we can make a few dollars each millisecond because we have the technological edge and we own the inside (read Goldman Sachs).

After all, what has changed? The disconnect between Main Street and Wall Street continues to exacerbate while Wall Street cheers and Main Street continues to struggle with financial calamity. I think many of us thought there would a common good that would rise out of this recession but it seems that whatever vestiges of it has been trampled. There has been a lot of negativity being stoked in the media that is very disturbing. People are drawn to drama and nastiness, it all goes hand in hand with the rise of reality television but there it should stay; drama and nastiness should not be the backbone of our news cycle.

Yes, we all could use some economic good news but the joyous news about economic recovery is too much good news to me when I am surrounded by so much unemployment and economic strife. I know that if things sound better and feel better then it should translate into a betterment for all. However, it seems that the benefits keep falling into the laps of the "haves" and not the "have nots."

Mad Dash

Next week I return to school and I think back about the last two glorious weeks of true summer weather. You would think that after a wet and cold June and July and the fact that our first 90 degree day occurred just two weeks ago, people would be thrilled that they had some summer to enjoy. Instead, all I've heard are complaints about it being too hot. I don't know where people spend the other 9 months of the year but it seems that they clearly did not get enough sunshine to activate the positive effects of its mood-altering qualities.

Anyhow, in between my mad dash to soak up some summer fun and getting the kids ready for back to school, I have also been madly dashing to the Doctor. Why? Next month we will lose our platinum and very, very expensive PPO healthcare plan, that we continued via COBRA, due to employment. Next month we will be on a catastrophic health plan, our only choice of healthcare with my husband's new company. Unfortunately, COBRA terminates the moment you are eligible for care under another plan otherwise we were willing to keep it and continue to pay the $500 a month for coverage until we exhausted our 9 months of 65% premium abatement courtesy of Federal stimulus funds. Alas.

The new plan will cost us just under $200 per month for which we will receive just the basic preventive care, strictly defined for man, woman and child. Any other healthcare requirements which, for me, are my allergies and my back will have to be paid for out-of-pocket until we reach $10,000 in out-of-pocket expenses. Then, we'll be covered for any health troubles after that. I suppose if you are healthy then it will be cheaper if you never need to see anyone outside of the basics. However, if you have nagging troubles like I do, then it will be a whole other ball game.

Tragically, I can see that my nagging troubles will continue to nag because I won't be paying several hundred dollars just to go to the Doctor, that I am sure about. It is different to have healthcare premiums deducted pre-tax out of your paycheck but it is another to have to pay the Doctor's fee straight up out one's dwindling post tax dollars. Yes, we can contribute to a health savings plan so that we can use pre-tax dollars to pay for some of that out-of-pocket care but it is a crapshoot as to how much you will need for you have to be clairvoyant to avoid leaving unused dollars on the table at the end of the year as they are forfeited.

The yeehas who are blocking the healthcare debate don't know what is coming down the pike. More companies will be turning to catastrophic health plans as health costs increase for all of those traditional plans and people, depending on their age, are not going to like it, believe me. If catastrophic care was desirable even in the slightest, I wouldn't be running around like a banshee trying to get everything done now, would I?

(FYI: I failed to purchase those lottery tickets that I mentioned last Thursday because I was too busy on Friday to remember. Also, I realize I do not frequent lottery selling establishments so I would have to go out of my way to do so. Yup, I failed lottery ticket buying 101.)

Reversal of Fortune

The LIPA tale continues. Today I came home from the beach (yes, I went again) to find that I had partial electricity, a brown out of sorts. So LIPA dispatched yet another solo guy in a truck to come back and fiddle with what his fleet of compatriots had supposedly fixed on Tuesday morning. In order to fix the problem, I and my seven neighbors had to be blacked out again for a few hours. It seems almost certain that we have entered an electrical twilight zone and this is not the end of it. But, if there are five more trucks here in the morning, I will definitely not be amused.

Anyhow, in a completely unrelated turn of events, the mega million lottery jackpot has hit $207,000,000 so tomorrow I am going out to buy some lottery tickets. I never buy lottery tickets and though I would not recommend this is in the normal course of my world or sensibilities, I am going to throw my hat into the luck pool and see if I get a return. I have spent a few dollars on much more worthless items and perhaps a little hope of winning something may not be so bad.

Some people are lucky and some are not. I am hoping for luck to smile my way in the job market; hoping that I get the opportunity to toil away at a thankless job for a few bucks, and believe me, I would be grateful. There are many of us who could use a reversal of fortune right now and I do hope that mine comes in the form of job but if I win the lottery, this will all be a moot point now, wouldn't it? I know my chances are slim to none and I do not plan to make a habit of buying them, that is truly not my style, but sometimes when you switch things up a bit, it helps to lighten the mood.

Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part Four: August has Delivered

All of my lamenting about the weather has been put to rest over the last 10 days. August has delivered. Since our first 90 degree day 10 days ago, the weather has remained warm enough to satisfy my soul. I have been to so many different beaches in the last 10 days, I have no rival.

My husband, whenever he is available to join me and the children on one of our beach excursions, always has the same three questions: "Where are we going? Have we been there before? Why can't you just pick a beach and stick to it? Well, Suffolk County has some of the most beautiful beaches, it is no accident that Suffolk County has two of the top ten beaches in America according to Dr. Beach.

Though Dr. Beach favors ocean beaches which are on the south shore, I must point out that the Long Island sound beaches on the north shore are just as beautiful. The setting reminds me of the Cape with bluffs high above the water overlooking beautiful coves. The water is calm, clear bay water and and the beaches are dazzling white though some complain that they are too rocky, nothing that aqua shoes can't cure though.

When we really feel like swimming we head up north where the Sound feels like one big giant swimming pool and you can pull up your chair to the edge, relax and read while the water gently laps at your feet. Brookhaven Town has a free residents-only beach which just happens to be my favorite north shore beach. The Town has free ocean beaches but they require a boat or a ferry ride across the Great South Bay which can make it cost prohibitive for many, including myself. Thus, I trek further out East to get my ocean fill. It is well worth the trip to run over to Westhampton or Southampton for a glorious day.

My least favorite beaches are those on the Great South Bay which just happens to be the closest to me. In fact, my street dead ends at the bay. The water quality is lacking in my opinion and is loaded with seaweed but the beaches are well utilized because of their proximity. However, it is great for boating and fishing and every advantage is taken in both regards. We go crabbing on the bay and have done quite well this year with our catches; meals have been made. This is a great year for crabbing, the bay is loaded, you feel like you can literally scoop them up as they float by.

See how happy I am now! Like I said, all I need is some sunshine.

Black Out

Last night, we had a blackout and I missed my post.

It was a hot summer night and we have had few such nights this summer so it was a night ripe for overuse of the electrical grid and we were not surprised until we discovered that the people up the street and the people down the street still had power. There were only seven houses down. Bad sign. We called LIPA and reported the problem. We were informed that the maintenance guy (she said 'guy' not 'crew') was up in Hauppauge and would arrive within 2-4 hours. They took our cell phone number and told us they'd call back with an update. And we waited.

Thirty minutes later, an automated message informed us that there was a "transformer issue" and a maintenance truck had been dispatched. We wondered out loud whether most average folk would understand what a transformer was and in light of the current summer blockbuster movie, Transformers, might perhaps think that we were dealing with some type of robot in disguise. Well, our maintenance truck showed up about an hour later and yes it was just one guy. We thought that maybe LIPA had really cut back, using automated messages, reducing personnel for emergency response, but then why were they still charging us so much?

Anyhow, our guy turned on his big search light and went up and down the street a few times looking for the right pole and we began to worry that we were in for a long night. Thankfully, we were having a great time catching up on street gossip with our fellow affected neighbors so it was all good. Meanwhile, our maintenance guy had found the pole with the transformer and appeared to be working on it. Then suddenly he turned off his big lights, got into the truck and drove off up the street at which point we panicked for we still had no electricity.

A few moments later he came barreling back down the street and pulled up at another pole. He had only set off to turn around. My street is a somewhat narrow dead end street with a few dead end side streets so it takes a little effort for a big truck to turn around. A few days ago, an 18 wheeler came down the street and the driver had to back all the way up the street to get out. Anyhow, the poor LIPA guy had to start lopping of branches in the middle of the night so he could reach the other pole. We of little faith waited while he fiddled at the pole certain that there was no power to be had.

At last a flicker in the house across the street or was it a candle? Then their floodlight came on, yeah! Except, we still had no juice. Oh no! Then straight out of poltergeist, the microwave clock and the refrigerator came on in our house. Nothing else. Well, at least the food would be saved, we thought. Then the TV flicked on and off and still none of the lights were working. We checked the neighbors on either side of us and their houses were still dark. A few minutes later one of the kitchen lights came on but not the other and still no other lights were working. Then slowly the whole house started to come back to life. It appeared to me that the guy was jury-rigging something for there was no credible explanation why parts of the house had electricity while other parts did not. None of our circuit breakers had blown so it was very strange. Finally, our house returned to full power and we rejoiced.

Our guy then packed up and left and that was that. Except the neighbors to our right still had no power. Oh well. The automated voice called back about an hour later to check if we had power, press 1 for yes, 2 for no. This morning we woke up to a fleet of LIPA trucks on the street. 5 huge trucks and lots of guys yelling and standing in the street for 5 long hours while work was done on the two poles. It was definitely overkill. Last night, it seemed like a miracle that we got our power back with the one lone guy toiling away but this morning, it was business as usual for LIPA.

Hello Retailers, Stop Rushing Us

Since many retailers moved up their back-to-school specials to July, I keep thinking the children are going back to school any day now. Yesterday, I finally stepped out to get going on the school shopping because I felt like I was running out of time. There have been flyers in the paper for weeks now advertising special discounts and so far I had failed to take advantage. Today, I checked the calendar and our school district does not open for another 4 weeks thanks to a late Labor Day holiday. So here I am thinking I have to rush for nothing.

These days, in an attempt to chase sales, retailers are pushing the calendar out of whack putting us all under pressure to shop months ahead of our usual timing. Many are experimenting with beginning Christmas sales in August. Halloween stuff is out in many stores already. Now we are supposed to shop for back-to-school, Halloween and Christmas at the same time. Hello retailers, we can only focus on one shopping season at a time. Throwing all the stuff out there months and months ahead of time believing that we will shop earlier for everything is just confusing all of us, well me. What was wrong with thinking about Christmas/holiday shopping after Halloween?

Well, as the dismal July retail sales reports are revealing, consumers are still in economic shock and they are not buying, no matter how many enticing discounts have been flung at them and I don't think that will change anytime soon. So, instead of rushing us in to buy everything that we would have bought through the end of the year by next week, retailers ought to adjust to the cold hard reality that the consumer is out of dough. Unfortunately, it is too late to change the fact that we are in for a very, very long Christmas/holiday shopping season this year. Egads!

Private Sector Employment Losing Luster

Now that all of the experts are predicting that the recession is pretty much over and the stock market is up 50% since March, we all should be breathing a sigh of relief. Our 401k plans are rising again, the economy is leveling off, all should be OK right? Yet, somehow, I feel disconnected from all of this economic joy. When I look around, I do not see things getting any better for the middle class; at least those employed by the private sector.

Over the last decade our wages have been stagnant but now they are just downright declining. In the last 8 years, my husband was only able to gain a wage increase by switching jobs, the last time we both actually got raises from a private employer was at the end of the 1990s. So far, many of our fellow unemployed folks who have been fortunate to get employment offers are accepting less pay for the same or similar job that they just lost.

My husband just got an offer over $10,000 less than his old job with an inferior healthcare plan. In fact, the company announced today that next year's plan will be even more inferior due to rising costs. We accepted the offer though because you can't look a gift job in the mouth these days. We are thrilled that one of us now has a job but as he looks around at the folks toiling in his new workplace, they are grateful to have a job and fearful of losing it. They all get in by 8am, work all day, take no lunch, take no vacations, and do not leave the office before 6pm. This is the new reality for many who work in the private sector.

Last weekend, I read in the New York Times that the economy produced 120,000 private sector jobs since 1999. In ten years, during all of the economic boom that we were supposedly experiencing, before all the bubbles crashed at once, only a net of 120,000 private sector jobs were created. Yet, during those boom times, many public sector unions were able to obtain the most generous salary and benefit increases that now must be honored despite the economic reversal of fortune.

Where I live, on the south shore of Suffolk County, most of the parents that I encounter in my community are public employees of some sort; teachers or school workers, police people, railroad workers, postal workers, fire people and the like who seem to be the only people still spending money. The rest are contractors; plumbers, carpenters, landscapers and mechanics, all of which did quite well over the last 10 years judging from their homes and their lifestyle but are now pulling back because of the economy. There are very few who work in the private sector, and if they do they are Long Island based. I imagine they are in the same boat as we are.

So far, in the six years that we have been living in our community we have not met anyone who commutes to the city like my husband does; I'm sure there's a few out there, though. After traveling all over the island and meeting more people, anecdotal evidence suggests that most NYC commuters live in Nassau County or above the LIE in Suffolk County. In fact, when we moved out here, our neighbors were shocked that my husband worked in the city. I suppose if we were surrounded by more NYC commuter folk, we could get a better pulse on how they are surviving.

Anyhow, we are starting to get jealous of the public sector people. They have job security, incredible lifestyles, nice homes, nice vacations, nice vehicles, nice everything and we feel like we are struggling all the time. We have no comfort zone when it comes to employment, we have no job security, we have to save for our own retirement and every year we have to pay more and accept a lesser healthcare plan. Who knew this was going to be the case? None of those public sector jobs were glamorous back in the 1980s when we were going to college and making our choices but now they look downright lovely. Sure, there will be a day of reckoning for those public sector employees but right now they are sitting pretty and I wish I was sitting there next to them right about now.

If not reform now, reform when?

Outright lies and blatant misinformation is compelling crowds of ordinary folk to swarm town hall meetings demonizing healthcare reform. Some are getting downright rabid about government-run healthcare, afraid that the government will dictate care despite the fact that we are all paying an average of $10,000 per family per year to a private insurer that does the same thing even worse. Private insurers regularly drop participants and regularly refuse coverage in the name of the bottom line. They are for profit endeavors with a mandate to make money and they will turn down me and you if the numbers dictate that they have to.

I guess someone forgot to inform those anti-reform revelers who are covered by medicaid or medicare that they are already seemingly and/or unknowingly satisfied with the government dictating their care? Or can we conclude that everyone in the crowd is so truly enamored with their private insurer that they can be duped by so-called grassroots organizations into shouting down an initiative before they have all of the facts. Or is it that those in the crowd who are unemployed were content with choosing between COBRA-ing their healthcare at an average of $1,000 a month or having no coverage at all?

Why is it so hard for health reform supporters to prove that these grassroots organizations are not grassroots; that they are using innocent Americans to further the interests of private insurers and the pharmaceutical industry? The rumors are eating away at the sanity of the regular folk as we sit here and watch a fake and vile fringe (note: all true fringes should take heed and disavow this organized corruption of their modus operundi ) hold a good portion of American society hostage with their manufactured bete noir.

Don't get me wrong, I have a healthy fear myself that we will not achieve true reform. We know what the special interests did to the bankruptcy bill, credit card reform bill and Medicare Part D and I shudder to think what egregious insert they will add to the new healthcare bill. However, shouting down any public forum where meaningful debate can take place is an outrage to democracy. Protest all you want but let the case be made first. If not reform now, reform when?

Reasons to Be Cheerful, Part Three: A 90 degree Day

I spent the first 90 degree Day of the summer at the beach in Southampton. Oooh Yeah! Actually, we set out to Coopers Beach, the number three beach on Dr. Beach's 2009 Best Beaches in America list. Actually Long Island has two beaches on the list, Main Beach in East Hampton takes the number five slot. I visited Main Beach a few summers ago so I thought I'd broaden my reach by going to Coopers.

I did a little research as I am wont to do and I was prepared to pay $20-$25 to park which is a lot, but reasonable for a day trip I thought. It turns out that the parking fee is $40. Wow, now that is steep, even for a 'killer' beach. I decided that no self-respecting unemployed person should pay $40 to park at the beach. Fortunately, the young lady at the gate who truly could have been a brat but was not suggested another beach down the road that had free parking*.

The 'free' beach had no lifeguards, snack bar, or any amenities whatsoever but that was fine with us, we had plenty of food and everything we needed. It was beautiful, few people, fine, soft sand and clean, clear water with little seaweed. It was fantastic. It is my new favorite beach.

We stopped at Coopers on the way back home to check it out; most beaches stop charging for parking at 5pm. Except for the amenities, the sand and water is basically the same as our 'free' beach so we did well and saved ourselves some bucks to boot.

* I do not want to give out too much detail on the 'free' beach location lest my new island paradise be overrun :)

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor

It is official. In a surprisingly swift nomination and confirmation process, the usually dysfunctional Congress has confirmed Sonia Sotomayor as the country's 111th Supreme Court justice. The Senate voted 68-31 in favor of her confirmation with nine Republicans joining the 59 Democrats; Senator Ted Kennedy was unfortunately too ill to come in and vote.

Sotomayor has an ivy league education, Princeton and Yale, 16 years on the bench, most recently as a Federal Appeals judge, and all of this was accomplished by a woman who grew up in the Bronx, NY housing projects. She has similar education and experience to our recently appointed Chief Justice, John Roberts, and even surpasses him in time served on the bench. In addition, it is a fact that she is the most qualified appointee in recent decades. Yet, she shall be remembered as the first Latin American to serve on the court.

Being the first Latin American and only the third woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court is not a bad thing, it is an extraordinary achievement. However, I would be remiss if I did not mention that the perceived threat to the white establishment was the overarching theme of her confirmation hearings. In fact, she was deemed a racist by some (read GOP) factions because she suggested that her unique experience might make her a better judge than her white counterparts. Yes, it may be horrible that she may rule in favor of keeping the white people down...NOT!

The ridiculousness of this assertion is, of course, the lesson that we must take from this historic occasion. This assertion is turning up everywhere as the white establishment (read closet racists) begin to feel more threatened by the success of minorities including and not limited to President Obama and Justice Sotomayor. Now that the minorities are starting to overcome, the "someday" when they will finally overcome is now creating a racial backlash unwittingly unleashed and mobilized by no other than Sarah Palin.

Sarah Palin? Really? Well, when you think about it, she was the one who came out and whipped this brew into a frenzy. This is when we first saw the nastiest racist outbursts against then candidate Obama. Fox News and other self-described conservatives have been deviously fomenting racial dischord as they orchestrate blanket disapproval of all the Obama Administration's policies. Right now healthcare reform is front and center. I fear it will only get nastier from here.

However, in the meantime, we should applaud Sonia Sotomayor for her achievement because she really earned it.

Performance Interruptance

I simply couldn't imagine my classmates in their underwear and chickened out of my aforementioned presentation. I was up til 2am working on it but I just could not muster up the courage to go "on stage." I failed performance 101. Alas, I feel dreadful and riddled with guilt.

I hope to be able to re-take the class to redeem myself. My inability to perform had nothing to do with my topic or qualifications or anything, I was simply afeared. It is completely irrational at this point and it is quite possible that I am beyond forging new pathways in my brain without professional help. Nevertheless, I am hoping that with advance warning and a much longer time-frame to prepare, I can have a presentation so well rehearsed that it helps to greatly reduce the forces of panic next time around. I shall see.

The tools of public presentation are very useful tools that can be applied to job interviews and other networking tactics necessary to round up and get that new job. So all I have to do is buck up and fear not. It seems a little late to still be trying to convince myself but I have to acknowledge the problem which is the first step toward a cure. This is what the experts say. I have even given a new name to my condition, "performance interruptance." It is faux Latin so it has to rhyme.

Hiding

Tomorrow I have a major presentation for class and I am absolutely terrified. It is to be a 5 minute speech on any topic using the "best practices" tools of public speaking. Unfortunately, I have such debilitating stage fright that my brain has blanked completely and I cannot even come up with a topic. That's the way I feel many times when I sit down to write this blog. Even though a blog can ultimately become something of value and many people create one precisely for that reason, I actually do not want anyone to know that I write it and am perfectly content to remain undiscovered. So far that is the case.

I have been writing this for over a year now but I still have not found any comfort zone where I no longer fear discovery. This blog was to be an exercise that would help me break out of my frightful shell but so far that has not happened. One day I hope. In the meantime, if I don't drop dead from a heart attack tomorrow, I will be back here as usual, hiding.

And Now for Something Completely Different...

...My 12 year old wishes to speak; to have the experience of posting on a blog. I have not been briefed about the topic and I am somewhat hesitant. After all, how much will I edit? How much should I allow? And don't these children have MySpace, twitter, Facebook and the rest to espouse their ideas without jumping into my private Idaho? Anyhow, here goes...

OK! So I'm sure that most of you with children out there have all heard the wild stories of teachers that your children come home with. The truth is they are probably fantasy made up for their 2 minutes of fame and laughter. Although I have to say I have had some pretty crazy school experiences. In the past years some teachers have been great, going out of their way for the well being of the students. But middle school has been a whirlwind of insane teachers and such.

Last year, I had a history teacher who mispronounced names of famous individuals such as Nicolas Copernicus, and thought that A.D. stood for after death. After I had pointed out that it was actually anno Domini she said oops and told me she had been teaching her kids wrong for years. Great. In the past year I had a teacher who had an imaginary pet bird in her class and would give detention to those who "sat" on it, or uttered its name, ummm.... On top of that, there was a teacher who threw objects at his students, who happened to be married to an insane English teacher who decided it was perfectly normal to talk about having children and fertility treatment every day in class. Let me tell you she had a field day on Romeo and Juliet if you know what I mean.

Why should school systems accept teachers like this? There is an outpouring of young teachers who are perfectly qualified and itching for a job. Yet we keep mediocre teachers who can't even pronounce what they are teaching. People always seem to question why the scores in my school district are so low. Well the answer is right in front of you. My opinion, next time your child comes home with some story about how inept their teacher is instead of laughing and blowing it off do something, write to the school, write to the county, even the state if you have to.

If we want a better education for our children then we have to do something about it, I mean it. Why should my mother have to pay extra to send me to private school when we should be able to get a good education publicly? With the taxes we pay, our school district should be one of the best school systems in the country. Just saying.

As the proud mother of this wonderful and exceptional child, I approve this message.