Just a quickie...

Just putting in a quick plug for ALS research and awareness before I head out tommorow. If you've been following the fledgling scarf project and want to know more about Lou Gherig's Disease and what you can do to help, click here: http://www.mdausa.org Thanks! And if you're interested in ordering a scarf, just let me know! :-)
-pg

The summer rages on...

So I guess I've gotten into a once-a-week posting habit. If I had anything witty or insightful to say, I'd post more often, but unfortunately the lack of interaction with students and the break from classes has turned my brain into mush. Occasionally something comes along to stimulate it...but it's usually bad news.

I woke up yesterday morning to the tragedy in London. One minute the spotlight is on Africa, and on maybe finally making some changes in this terribly uneven world...and the next we're lamenting the loss of innocent people and talking about the war on terror again. I'm sickened by all of it. I don't understand the human bloodlust that leads us to think that we can solve our problems and make things right by killing each other. Doesn't God get sick of hearing his name invoked for the sake of murder? When are we finally going to say enough is enough? Or will we not have our appetites for mass destruction sated until we've completely destroyed each other, and the planet along with us? I'm still young and idealistic enough to believe that there's no justification for killing people. The lives of fifty Londoners aren't any more valuable than the lives of a few thousand Iraqi civilians who got in the way of our coalition, are they? It's awful and wrong and devastating when people kill each other--no matter why.

I've got to stop thinking so much about stuff like this. I need to focus on the problems of my own little life instead of lecturing about global issues that I don't even understand. So let's change the subject. The big father-daughter reunion is coming up in a few days, and I'm kind of excited, though characteristically dubious and pessimistic. Stuff with The Boy is going pretty well. My cable is back on...but wouldn't you know it, my thirteen-year-old TV broke, so I'm stuck squinting at my 12-incher until I can save enough money to buy a new one. If it's not one thing, it's another.

And I think I have a name for the scarf project,thanks to Lauren who talked to an old friend who I thought hated me...maybe not? We're thinking "That's A Wrap!" How's that? Good? Bad? I've been knitting away during these summer months, so we even have a small inventory. I kind of wish I could do socks, because I had this idea to call it "Sock it to ALS!", but unfortunately, while I can handle scarves, hats, and ipod covers, the sock continues to elude me. Anyway, feedback on the name would be helpful, but you're not allowed to say you hate it unless you can think of something better. Is that fair?

Alrighty, well, I guess if I'm planning to take a week off, I should at least pretend to get a little work done before I go. So that's all for today...forgive the brief peacegrrl hiatus, but I don't want to blog from the padre's computer and have him stumble across it and decide he has an evil uber-left-wing commie for a daughter, leading him to withdraw all parental support. He drives me nuts, but I do love him and feel it best to spare him from my bleeding-heart rhetoric. He's getting old, and I don't know if he could take it...
Back soon!
-pg

Not much to say

So haven't posted in a while, for the simple reason that I'm too pissy for the blog these days. I mean, I know negativity is sort of my trademark, but there comes a point where even I get tired of my own complaining. Plus, really, things aren't that bad, I'm just bored. And kinda bummed because numerous attempts to get together for a visit with The Boy have been failures, and I feel like we're at something of a stalemate. There's really not much to be done, other than just wait and see how it plays out, and we all know how lousy I am at waiting...

Well, the monotony will be broken up a bit next weekend, since I'm heading to Virginia to spend "quality time" with my father and stepmother. Our visits are always an exercise in caution and restraint. Since our relationship is pretty fragile (see this post for a recap), we spend most of the time jetting around sightseeing, and he spoils me something awful. Overall it's not too bad. It only gets wierd when we're eating dinner and he insists on watching Fox News and trying to bait me. Or when we're taking a long drive and he starts rambling on about affirmative action and Southern pride. Then I end up biting my tongue so hard that it bleeds, trying to keep my comments to myself and preserve the thin ties that bind us. At least it's not an election year...the last visit was especially painful. But every year I get a little more mature and better able to pick my battles. This time we're driving up to Baltimore and visiting my grandmother, and I'll get to watch the two of them snip at each other for a few days. There's nothing more uncomfortable than watching two family members you don't know very well argue about where to go for lunch. These heated debates can last all afternoon, so this time I'll be prepared with a Zone bar in my purse in case we don't end up eating until four.

This post is pretty weak, I know it. I seem to be fresh out of witty comments, and even my usually amusing "personal life" is mired in uninteresting details. Forgive me, I promise I'll try to be more interesting next time!
-pg