Election Day

Today is Election Day.  I hope you have or will vote.  THIS POST IS NOT PARTISAN.  Undoubtedly you are sick and tired of political ads.  You may have a strong interest in particular candidates or issues.  Unfortunately, after today many people will lose interest in what is happening in Congress or their state legislatures.  I include myself in that group.

In all my sparring with friends, family and strangers on Facebook and in person during this election cycle, there is one thing in which we all agree.  The people we have or will elect to Congress or the White House are not getting much done.  I don't mean taking positions on their favorite issues.  I mean voting on legislation.  Isn't that their job, anyway?

Why isn't the business we sent them there to do not getting done?  The answer is something we have all known since Kindergarten.  If we don't work together, things don't get done.  No matter what political party you support, I have found that this issue produces universal agreement.  The difficult part is that after we vote, we aren't interested or have no way to keep an eye on our representatives, senators, governor and president.

One way is to watch the news.  The problem with this is there is no unbiased media outlet.  If you are trusting the talking heads (on either end of the political spectrum), you are watching entertainment, not news.  I have been researching and looking for a place to find information without spin.  It's not easy.  You can look at the government websites, but it is very difficult to sift through the bills, figure out what they are about and see what was attached to them at the last minute.  (This is coming from an attorney who has been doing legislative research for 20 years.)

I recently did find a website I like - Vote Smart  (www.votesmart.org).  You can find information about your representatives in Congress (even if you don't know their names).  You can find information about bills that address your favorite (or not) issues.  You can find out how your representatives voted (or not) on particular bills and what those bills are about.  Vote Smart is a not for profit and it is non-partisan.  They will solicit you for a donation, but it's not required.  Even if you don't visit the website, you can ask it to track particular issues, events, representatives and many more things and it will send you an email.  In a time when it is very difficult to keep up with what your representative at the State House or in Congress is doing, it's a welcome wealth of information.

You can also contact your representatives directly through email or by telephone - just google to find your rep or Vote Smart has that information too.  Many representatives have their own websites.  Don't be afraid to voice your concern or support for issues or upcoming votes.  It really does make a difference and you are likely to get a personal response from the representative's office.

I realize it won't be easy to keep up with our elected officials, but if we don't try I fear we will end up with more of the same gridlock in D.C. (and maybe your state legislature) for years to come.  I would also like to know more about representatives before I am asked to vote based on information provided in negative campaign ads we all hate but see throughout the election cycle.

We can all agree on that, right?

God bless America.

cindy

Shaking the Tree

I've been working on a quilt - it's one crazy quilt.  There are lots of fabric colors and designs, and I had this insane idea to hand embroider over the seams.  The squares are uneven and the embroidery is crude.  It's a bit of a hot mess, but one of a kind.  And I am spending a LOT of time to finish it.

When my dad died, I realized I knew almost nothing about my family name.  My dad was the only child of essentially a single mother.  That's when I became interested in genealogy.  I've been shaking the trees on both sides of my family since then and I've been amazed and amused at what I have found.  I have learned that even though it's exciting to know you are a descendant of Charlemagne, Holy Roman Emperor (really!), at some point the names become meaningless without some backstory.

Random Olympic Thoughts

We're getting closer to the end of the Olympics now and my DVR is full.  I'm sure I will miss it when it's over, although I must admit that I'm getting a little overloaded with all the events.  With only 53 medals up for grabs, the U.S. is in the lead over China.  I think we got past all the Chinese Olympic events.

After watching over a week, there are a couple of things that occur to me:

1.  Bob Costas is the next Dick Clark.

2.  If Tim Daggett or Elfi Schlegel says a gymnast "shouldn't have a problem here" or "she's absolutely the best vaulter in the world right now" or any number of positive things about upcoming gymnastics, it's the kiss of death.

3.  You can't help but smile at our fun Olympic swimmers (but you will have to click through to YouTube to see the video):

4.  Best quote from my husband:  "Watching the volleyball finals. Hoping the hot chicks in bikinis win."

5.  McKayla Maroney is not impressed

6.  Most photoshopped Olympic athlete - McKayla Maroney

7.  The German heavyweight weight lifter who dropped the 432 pound weight on the back of his neck - ouch!

8.  Not to be outdone, a German diver lands on his back.

9.  Did anyone else see that short piece of former Olympic gymnasts (Shaun, Nastia, Carly, Mary Lou & Nadia) right before the women's all around started?  They were so serious, saying things like "this is the most important moment of your life" and "this will change your life forever".  Heck, why not try a little more pressure: "If you blow this your life will be ruined."  "If you screw this up, don't bother coming back to the U.S.A, loser."  Excuse me, but no matter how important the Olympics are for these teenagers, I hardly think it will be THE MOST IMPORTANT day of their lives.  If so, everyone but Gabby Douglas would have hanged herself.

10.  Samuel Jackson is the most prolific (and profane) Olympic tweeter ever! (If you have sensitive eyes, don't go there.)

Wow, this has really been a fun Olympics!  AND it's not over!

cindy

The Olympic "Bod"

It's Day 5 of the Olympics and I'm only 1 day behind (I have all of today's coverage recorded).  I've seen so many sports.  I have to give NBC kudos, especially the coverage on their "alternate" channels (Bravo, MSNBC and other cable channels).  Those channels cover sports that might not be so popular  (equestrian, judo, white water rafting) and full length games (soccer, basketball, volleyball).

While I've been watching these sports, I've noticed that there is no "prototype" Olympic athlete.  Women athletes vary by sport - gymnasts are very short (I saw a Romanian girl who is 16 and 4'7"!), while beach volleyball, indoor volleyball and basketball players are very tall.  Women swimmers are bulked up above the waist with thick necks while the rowers and bikers have rock hard legs.  Women weight lifters are . . . umm . . . square.  They are short and built like barrels.   Just sayin'

Men seem to have more similarities.  All appear to be very muscular.  The gymnasts are strange looking, with huge shoulders and legs on short little bodies.  Basketball and volleyball players are just too tall.  Water polo players have amazing bodies but faces like hockey players, and swimmers . . . even when they lose they look good.

Older athletes can be found in sports that feature specialized skills, like archery, shooting and equestrian events.  The average age of the human equestrian competitor is 40, while the horses average about 13-15 years old (which is not a young horse).  Men and women compete against each other.  Sometimes I wonder how much skill and stamina is the horse and how much is the rider.  About the time I start to compare riders to dog trainers, I see a picture of the equestrian cross country.  BTW, that's a woman, and no, she's doing exactly what she's supposed to be doing on that course.

All kidding aside, I've seen some great Olympic moments - the American women winning the gold medal in team gymnastics; Michael Phelps winning his 21st medal in the 200 freestyle relay; the British men's team winning a bronze in team gymnastics; the American girls who won the synchronized diving silver medal; and the astonishing beauty and difficulty that was the equestrian cross country event.

Yep, I'm loving it.  I don't think too many people are geeky Olympic junkies like I am (except for my friend Linda), but I hope you're all enjoying it too.  We still have another whole week!

cindy

It's ON!

I said I was going to be an Olympic junkie.  Yep, about 15 hours of TV coverage in so far.  I've seen beach volleyball, volleyball, table tennis (we all know it's just ping pong), archery, soccer (which I love to watch in fast forward), swimming and biking (another sport I love watching in fast forward).
So far the best part was the Opening Ceremonies.  We recorded all 4 1/2 hours and watched every minute.  For those of you who live under a rock and didn't see it, here are the highlights:

1.  The Queen jumped out of a plane with James Bond (you had to be there)
2.  Mr. Bean played "Chariots of Fire" with the London Symphony Orchestra (my son's personal favorite)
3.  The Industrial Revolution creating the 5 Olympic rings
4.  The fast pace of the Parade of Nations and the tiny tiny graphic that showed the location of each country by showing it in relation to the U.S. (for the truly geographically challenged)
5.  Paul McCarthy, Paul McCarthy and Paul McCarthy singing "Hey Jude" with the crowd (although I don't think the young Olympians had ever heard it)

Some of the huh? moments:

1.  The Queen agreed to jump out of a plane
2.  The "girl meets boy" concept through a dance set of the 70s through the 90s.
3.  The HORRIBLE Beatles cover band, especially the lead singer who sang every note flat.  It was especially embarrassing because Paul McCarthy was in the stadium.
4.  The goofy costumes and signs for the girls carrying the names of the countries in the Parade of Nations
5.  The homage to the British National Health Service.  Huh??



There haven't been very many personal stories about the athletes just yet, which is a bummer.  I'm assuming it's because the networks are just trying to cram in as many sports as they can.  There were a couple about bicyclists, including the piece on how biking is a huge deal on the tiny Isle of Mann between England and Ireland.  The site of all these young children cycling (we would call it spinning) was very interesting.

Perhaps the most interesting sport I've seen yet is fencing.  I watched a couple of matches with women fencers.  It looks like the ultimate Wii game - you have all the electronics and beeping, but you also get the physical exercise.  The fencers score points by touching their electronic foils (swords) on their opponent's torso body padding (looks a lot like a bullet proof vest to me).  You know a fencer scores a point because a big beep goes off and their helmet lights up (very Tron-like).  It's cool for a while, but between the beeping, the French speaking referees and the screaming fencers, it gives you a headache after a while.

So, that's my first Olympic report.  Are you watching?  What's your favorite part?

cindy