Citizens:
I must say this blogging thing has opened many doors - tech wise. Already hyperactive, I've now gone interactive and possibly radioactive from too much face time with the world wide web. I've peeked behind the tech door and now you're looking (virtually) at a person who has a gmail account (iamcitizenb@gmail.com) and an iGoogle home page with a highly functional layout.
My personalized page displays the usual suspects of date & time, calendar, local news, weather (including an impressive Doppler radar), local links, movies, and TV guide. I added a few national news and political sites, business and market watch, and on the opposite end of the spectrum items like EW.com and People. We all know how important it is to keep up with the latest celebrity assaults, top 100 teen idols (there are more than 10?), and hits and misses on the red carpet.
I also added a Fat Loss Tip of the Day (don't eat croutons), Flower of the Day (Freesia, meaning trust & innocence), NY Times crossword, and other random stuff.
I've managed to become slightly more technical all while discouraging Marshall The Cat and his constant attempts to interfere. Once he paw-typed "zzzzzz" in place of my preset "user name" when he happened to step on my laptop at a very critical log-in moment. Fortunately, I didn't have to make the dreaded call to the Help Desk... "Yes, hello...ugh...my cat erased my user name. Okay, let me remove him from the key board."
Now to the topic of widgets; specifically Meditation Chimes. I liked the idea of something interactive (and calming) and decided to add it as a feature to iGoogle and my blog site. I truly enjoy the ding, dong, bong of the chimes. It's relaxing especially with eyes closed. The problem with closed eyes is that I end up missing the mallet and clicking on the Doppler radar on iGoogle or "The Citizen Archives" on the blog.
Remember the satisfaction of banging on a xylophone as a kid? This will not happen with the widget Meditation Chimes. The fundamental flaw with Meditation Chimes is that you can only bong one chime at a time. There is no jazzing it up by hitting multiple chimes and there is absolutely no grand maestro finale with a dramatic sweep of the mallet across the length of chimes.
While I'm happy with my newly found tech savvy, I'm reminded that the wildest widgets in the world can't replace the experience of the real thing...and I'm more likely to find my Zen chomping croutons.
Ding, dong, bong,
CitizenB
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
If You Can't Beat'em, Join'em
Dear Citizens,
Last night the Republicans rolled out their best version of Obama, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. Young, ethnic and highly educated. That's where the comparison ends. In his address, Obama spoke to us as adults. Jindal seemed to be speaking to a group of third-graders. I admit it was difficult to take him seriously because he reminded me of an Indian-American version of Kenneth - The Page on "30 Rock." If I remember correctly, there was an episode where Kenneth reminisced about his Daddy taking him to the store. (Okay, I made that up.)
I'm sure Jindal has lots of potential as a Republican politician but last night he didn't say much. What could he say? He was a little sideways in stating the stimulus bill was "irresponsible" considering he accepted $3.7B of the $3.8B offered to LA. (I suppose only $100M was irresponsible.) He also didn't mention the billions the evil government paid to rebuild after Katrina.
IMO, we are the government and we gotta do what we gotta do. Yes, the current state of affairs and resulting stimulus plan is painful and unfair in many respects; especially for fiscally responsible American citizens. As one of those citizens, I don't like it... but I'm willing to look at the big picture and what's at stake for all of us.
Okay, so we must act quickly in this crisis and there's a lot of ground to cover. I'm all for getting the heart beating again ("clear!") while simultaneously making things happen like health care reform. Because we, the government, are historically slow to act, I'm hesitant to say let's be careful about acting all at once. We don't want a mind-boggling amount of money to be squandered. There must be change at the core or money won't fix anything. Obama recognizes this.
Lastly, the atmosphere in the house chamber was so incredibly different from the last - well, forever. Where has our leadership been for all these years?
Obama gave a brave and highly ambitious speech. And, yes, we need his kind of leadership.
CitizenB
Last night the Republicans rolled out their best version of Obama, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. Young, ethnic and highly educated. That's where the comparison ends. In his address, Obama spoke to us as adults. Jindal seemed to be speaking to a group of third-graders. I admit it was difficult to take him seriously because he reminded me of an Indian-American version of Kenneth - The Page on "30 Rock." If I remember correctly, there was an episode where Kenneth reminisced about his Daddy taking him to the store. (Okay, I made that up.)
I'm sure Jindal has lots of potential as a Republican politician but last night he didn't say much. What could he say? He was a little sideways in stating the stimulus bill was "irresponsible" considering he accepted $3.7B of the $3.8B offered to LA. (I suppose only $100M was irresponsible.) He also didn't mention the billions the evil government paid to rebuild after Katrina.
IMO, we are the government and we gotta do what we gotta do. Yes, the current state of affairs and resulting stimulus plan is painful and unfair in many respects; especially for fiscally responsible American citizens. As one of those citizens, I don't like it... but I'm willing to look at the big picture and what's at stake for all of us.
Okay, so we must act quickly in this crisis and there's a lot of ground to cover. I'm all for getting the heart beating again ("clear!") while simultaneously making things happen like health care reform. Because we, the government, are historically slow to act, I'm hesitant to say let's be careful about acting all at once. We don't want a mind-boggling amount of money to be squandered. There must be change at the core or money won't fix anything. Obama recognizes this.
Lastly, the atmosphere in the house chamber was so incredibly different from the last - well, forever. Where has our leadership been for all these years?
Obama gave a brave and highly ambitious speech. And, yes, we need his kind of leadership.
CitizenB
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Emily, Our Newest and Littlest Citizen
Dear Citizens,
Please allow me to introduce the newest addition to the family, Emily Maribel.
Emily was born Tuesday, February 17 at 7:49 a.m. and weighed in at 7 lb. 7 oz. She's a petite 18" long.
She's adorable and totally Zen even when she spits up a little. Her beautiful black hair forms in to a perfect faux-mohawk* and her big blue-brown eyes will melt your heart.
Mom Whitney is doing well. She is such a patient, loving mother. Like most fathers, Dad Jose, smiling brightly, is probably a little stunned by the whole birthing experience. It is quite stunning.
Big brother Gabriel, 2 1/2, is getting with the program and the idea of sharing his mom with "Emme". I learned last night that you should always carry a spare hot wheel race car, preferably black, in your purse. If not, be prepared to allow a 2 year old to play with your I Phone.
Here's to Emily. I can't wait to watch you grow up.
Aunt Citizen B
*Note: Her mother does not approve of the faux-mohawk; at least not yet.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Honoring Our Presidents - The Good, the Bad, and the Forgotten
As a citizen, I'm compelled to comment on yet another holiday. I'm still in disbelief I actually blogged about Valentine's Day.
Today is Presidents Day and to most Americans this means banks and government offices are closed. No mail delivery today. That's about it. At least it's one less day for banks and the government to make a total mess of our lives.
There's no birthday cake for George Washington with 277 candles nor Abe Lincoln with 200 (that I know of) and someone in charge needs to make cake a priority on Presidents Day (Hillary, will you fit this in before your inaugural Asia trip?) We all know birthday cake calories don't count and with a cake large enough to hold a combined 477 candles, we could eat a lot of guiltless cake. Who needs another parade or red, white, and blue bunting?
I suppose the purpose of Presidents Day is to allow schools to focus on educating our children about presidents and government. (Oh, and to promote patriotism.) I hope our future generation is learning something stimulating about presidential history and that it involves information not on a standardized test. When will we figure out that our kids need creative ways of learning without concentrating solely on which circle to fill in with a #2 pencil?
I'm not suggesting that the assassinations of Lincoln and JFK or Washington's siege of Boston be reenacted in the classroom. Although most kids see much worse on TV and video games. We certainly don't want Monica Lewinsky to be portrayed in any manner or George W.'s spelling to be showcased.
I've been out of public school for longer than I care to mention. Today, I had to think back on what I learned about Presidents Day. Most of it had to due with memorization. So I put my memory to the test and beginning with Washington I made it to president #7. For some reason I hit a mental block after Andrew Jackson. I fared a little better starting with Obama and working in reverse. I actually made it to Warren G. Harding or 16 back. At least I remembered the 11 presidents in office during my lifetime. I admit to almost forgetting Ford.
Why is it so difficult to recall all the guys in the middle? I remembered Lincoln, Johnson, Buchanan, Teddy Roosevelt, Polk, and Taylor, and except for Lincoln at #16, I don't know their numbers. I also remembered Grover Cleveland because once we visited an historic house in Nashville where a special bath had been designed to accommodate his large size. Also, the Baby Ruth candy bar was named after Cleveland's daughter. Considering my love of sugar, this wasn't hard to remember along with the snack cakes named for Dolley Madison.
The in-between president names remind of those one would find in an elite country club registry - Harrison, Tyler, Pierce, Hayes, Arthur, McKinley, Van Buren. Maybe this is why I've blocked them from my memory.
During this exercise in futility, I actually remembered an excellent learning experience. I was one of several 7th and 8th grade Speech students presenting an after-school program highlighting excerpts from famous FDR speeches. We were dressed in red, white, and blue. I wore a white cotton dress with navy blue trim that Mom sewed just for the occasion. Each student stood on a designated "X" on the dark stage in the school auditorium and when a beam from a red, white or blue spotlight blinded us one by one, we were cued to give our our speech.
I remember arriving and my teacher advising one of the student speakers had strep throat (instead of failing to memorize FDR) and I was to take his part in addition to mine. No pressure! I remember my bit was an excerpt from the famous inaugural speech "...the only thing we have to fear is fear itself..."
This 1933 speech speaks eerily to the current state of the union. In that life is cyclical, does this mean Coolidge and Hoover preceding FDR were as lame as George W.? Most likely.
CitizenB
Today is Presidents Day and to most Americans this means banks and government offices are closed. No mail delivery today. That's about it. At least it's one less day for banks and the government to make a total mess of our lives.
There's no birthday cake for George Washington with 277 candles nor Abe Lincoln with 200 (that I know of) and someone in charge needs to make cake a priority on Presidents Day (Hillary, will you fit this in before your inaugural Asia trip?) We all know birthday cake calories don't count and with a cake large enough to hold a combined 477 candles, we could eat a lot of guiltless cake. Who needs another parade or red, white, and blue bunting?
I suppose the purpose of Presidents Day is to allow schools to focus on educating our children about presidents and government. (Oh, and to promote patriotism.) I hope our future generation is learning something stimulating about presidential history and that it involves information not on a standardized test. When will we figure out that our kids need creative ways of learning without concentrating solely on which circle to fill in with a #2 pencil?
I'm not suggesting that the assassinations of Lincoln and JFK or Washington's siege of Boston be reenacted in the classroom. Although most kids see much worse on TV and video games. We certainly don't want Monica Lewinsky to be portrayed in any manner or George W.'s spelling to be showcased.
I've been out of public school for longer than I care to mention. Today, I had to think back on what I learned about Presidents Day. Most of it had to due with memorization. So I put my memory to the test and beginning with Washington I made it to president #7. For some reason I hit a mental block after Andrew Jackson. I fared a little better starting with Obama and working in reverse. I actually made it to Warren G. Harding or 16 back. At least I remembered the 11 presidents in office during my lifetime. I admit to almost forgetting Ford.
Why is it so difficult to recall all the guys in the middle? I remembered Lincoln, Johnson, Buchanan, Teddy Roosevelt, Polk, and Taylor, and except for Lincoln at #16, I don't know their numbers. I also remembered Grover Cleveland because once we visited an historic house in Nashville where a special bath had been designed to accommodate his large size. Also, the Baby Ruth candy bar was named after Cleveland's daughter. Considering my love of sugar, this wasn't hard to remember along with the snack cakes named for Dolley Madison.
The in-between president names remind of those one would find in an elite country club registry - Harrison, Tyler, Pierce, Hayes, Arthur, McKinley, Van Buren. Maybe this is why I've blocked them from my memory.
During this exercise in futility, I actually remembered an excellent learning experience. I was one of several 7th and 8th grade Speech students presenting an after-school program highlighting excerpts from famous FDR speeches. We were dressed in red, white, and blue. I wore a white cotton dress with navy blue trim that Mom sewed just for the occasion. Each student stood on a designated "X" on the dark stage in the school auditorium and when a beam from a red, white or blue spotlight blinded us one by one, we were cued to give our our speech.
I remember arriving and my teacher advising one of the student speakers had strep throat (instead of failing to memorize FDR) and I was to take his part in addition to mine. No pressure! I remember my bit was an excerpt from the famous inaugural speech "...the only thing we have to fear is fear itself..."
This 1933 speech speaks eerily to the current state of the union. In that life is cyclical, does this mean Coolidge and Hoover preceding FDR were as lame as George W.? Most likely.
CitizenB
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