American society

Was It All A Waste?

Posted on by kkwrites8739

Thoughts and prayers to all the people of color who are used to violence and discrimination. Thoughts and prayers to all the GLBT+ population who are used to violence and discrimination. Thoughts and prayers to all the people living with disabilities who are used to having few rights, few jobs, no money, and little understanding. Thoughts and prayers to all the women past (and PLEASE not future) who have had to go in secret, hide in shame, and even die from childbirth because an entitled few want to police their bodies. Thoughts and prayers to all the families who lost loved ones during a pandemic because a select few politicized protections. Thoughts and prayers to yet one more incredibly unnecessary and preventable mass school shooting.

I wonder if my life has been a waste? My time. My morals. My strong beliefs. All a waste? Since age 18 I’ve been attending (even creating) protests against those who would take away the rights of others. I strongly believe in advocating and helping those who need tools to get a fair share. It’s been a grueling, time consuming, financially consuming 30 years of standing up to the one per-centers, the extremists, the religiously fanatic.

And now our country is going in reverse.

So. Do protests do any good? Do petitions do any good? Do letter writing campaigns do any good? Does personally speaking with my supposed elected leaders do any good? Cuz the way things are headed, I think not. People in government don’t speak my wants and needs. People in leadership positions haven’t lived the life of those whose rights they limit. If something doesn’t affect them personally, hit them in the gut, they simply don’t care. The bottom line? Whose gonna pay them the most to vote in which direction?

Do we really have to get as bad as living a Real Life “Handmaiden’s Tale?” Do we really want to go back to the time of our Founding Fathers when women, children, people of color, people with disabilities, GLBT+ all had to hide and/or run for their lives? When all of those populations had NO rights and the world was ruled by men? Only men. Only rich men. It sounds like communist Russia or the current horror movie in theaters, “Men.”

I’ve done my fighting. I’m tired. I live in physical chronic pain and I simply can’t “fight the good fight” any more. I felt like it was time for the new crop of youth to take the stage and continue the fight. We NEED the actions of the 1960’s and 1970’s. We NEED real revolution. I don’t see it happening. I’m feeling fear and sadness for our future.

I almost lost my son once. It was the worst 24 hours of my life. If he’d died I don’t think I would have lived through it. I simply can NOT imagine anything worse for a parent. My brother died of Covid-19. We are still trying to figure out how to mourn. With my son’s accident I was able to be there. Hold his hand. Try to take pain away. I was THERE. With my brother’s death; it’s still not real. He was alone. No one held his hand. Family couldn’t be there. He died in so much pain. My parents; I don’t know how they can handle it. I know my mother’s not handling it well.

It’s got to be the same when a loved one, a child, is gunned down. Family isn’t there to help with the pain and fear. They are alone.

No thoughts and prayers are going to help. I feel so empty. There’s nothing I can do. Protests, etc, haven’t helped. Government refuses to respond.

36 Mothers lost a child just today: 5/24/22. https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/charts-and-maps

143 lives have been lost to guns in the last 72 hours.

With 25 lines per page listing mass shootings since 2014, on 80 pages, that equals 2,000 mass shootings in the US in 8 years!!!!!! “Mass Shootings are, for the most part an American phenomenon. While they are generally grouped together as one type of incident they are several with the foundation definition being that they have a minimum of four victims shot, either injured or killed, not including any shooter who may also have been killed or injured in the incident.”

“Before the Uvalde rampage, there were 26 school shootings resulting in injury or death in the U.S. in 2022, according to Education Week, which tracks shootings at schools in which there are any firearm-related injuries or deaths.”

“As of December 2021, 693 (of which 303 resulted in zero deaths) fit the Mass Shooting Tracker project criterion, leaving 703 people dead and 2,842 injured, for a total of 3,545 total victims, some including the shooter(s).”

“How do US gun deaths break down? According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a total of 45,222 people died from gun-related injuries of all causes during 2020, the last year for which complete data is available.”

“The Small Arms Survey stated that U.S. civilians alone account for 393 million (about 46 percent) of the worldwide total of civilian held firearms. This amounts to “120.5 firearms for every 100 residents.”

“While many U.S. residents own no guns at all, many others own multiple guns—the end result of which is that the U.S. is home to more guns than people. An ABC News article about the survey pointed out that the U.S. has “less than 5% of the world’s population, but 40% of the world’s civilian-owned guns.”

“More Americans died of gun-related injuries in 2020 than in any other year on record, according to recently published statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That included a record number of gun murders, as well as a near-record number of gun suicides.” “Though they tend to get less public attention than gun-related murders, suicides have long accounted for the majority of U.S. gun deaths. In 2020, 54% of all gun-related deaths in the U.S. were suicides (24,292), while 43% were murders (19,384), according to the CDC. The remaining gun deaths that year were unintentional (535), involved law enforcement (611) or had undetermined circumstances (400).”

As you can see in this research article, statistics prove that states with harsher gun laws and magazine laws do actually have much fewer gun related deaths. It’s also surprising to read that the majority of federal gun laws have only been made when a sitting US President has had an assassination attempt.

So, does that mean the lives of every day average “Joe” citizens are not as important as our leaders?

I am disgusted. I hope you are too.

It’s about respect

Posted on by kkwrites8739

Please read.

I don’t post this stuff for sympathy. I post to advocate for ALL people with disabilities. I post so everyone knows what it’s like. I mean you all don’t go to disability websites, blogs, Facebook pages etc to learn unless something happens to someone you know or love. Well, guess what, everyone needs to know this stuff so everyone can help to make it better.

If you see someone parked illegally in a handicap space; REPORT IT to the police, not the store. They don’t care. I mean, Walmart changed out a bunch of handicap spaces and made them into spaces for people running in and out to their pharmacy. I get it during Covid when pharmacy employees had to be running in/out to deliver, but now? Lazy people park there so they’re closer to the doors if they’re going to the pharmacy or not plus shopping the entire store so the space isn’t available for an hour. Clinics pharmacies put up those spaces, too, but they only allow parking in those spaces IF an employee is bringing out your medicine. ONLY!!!!!!!!!!!! Can people just stop being SO lazy? 3 of those spots were taken up by vehicles WITH proper handicap parking stuff at Walmart today. GOOD FOR THEM!!!!!!! Show people who SHOULD be able to park there.

If you see youth playing on the electric shopping carts YELL AT THEM EVEN IF THEY’RE NOT YOUR KID! The last 5 times I’ve gone to Walmart there have been NONE available and 4 or 5 of them marked Do Not Use: broken. Target has always had one available or tries to find one for you. Leukens? Usually has some available. Marketplace had one available. NO other stores in town have them. Not sure if Home Depot or Menards or Fleet do, but I’ve never seen any available.

See kids (or asshole adults) pounding the button to open the door electronically or simply standing there repeatedly pushing the button? TELL THEM TO STOP!!!!! Ask them if they know how difficult it is to get in a door using crutches or wheelchair, etc, when those buttons are SO OFTEN broken? Tell them they SHOULD CARE because it will be their grandparents, a family member, or a friend who WILL need those buttons some day.

I understand now why my Mom has been refusing the wheelchair for 25 years. It totally takes away your independence! It causes pain to use! (At least for people with multiple medical disabilities.) And she has a husband to help her.I am lamenting the loss of independence and self-ability (is that a word?) I didn’t want to be in a wheelchair at 52, almost 53. No one does. Being single really doesn’t help. I don’t have a partner to help push a cart so I can roll the chair. Take Aidan with me? Sometimes (OK, a lot) I really just want to get my errands done without worrying how bad his anxiety is at that moment. I just can’t do it without him anymore. I realized that today. Had a momentary crying jag in the car of physical pain and emotional frustration. Then told myself to stop and just accept it.

After the fiasco of trying to get my temporary handicap parking permit (back and forth 3 times to clinic to DVS,) on my crutches; I am in SO much pain now. Plus, slipping on ice on crutches makes your back twist. Not fun. I HATE ice melt crystals due to the impact on the environment but USING IT IS NECESSARY. It’s not just a nice thing to do that very few stores use beyond their front door. You CAN’T use a wheelchair on ice! That’s a whole new concept of “sit and spin.” LOL. Walkers, canes, crutches on ice? ASKING FOR PEOPLE TO HAVE A BAD FALL. Please ask your stores to use ice melt on their sidewalks and maybe even around handicap parking spaces.

Walk Safe This Winter – Newsletter – Orofino Physical Therapy

ALSO, snow/ice from shoes/boots tracking in/out of stores NEEDS TO BE WIPED UP ASAP!!!! I almost wiped out slipping on my crutches on melted “water” at 3 places today. Businesses in northern states should just KNOW that once the sleet and snow falls they need to have at least one employee on each shift mopping up water all day long. Is it a sucky job, sure, but do you want your customers to come back? Do you want to be sued, or at the very least have to pay for someone’s medical bills? When you’re on Medical Assistance and go to a doctor for an injury they send you a questionairre EVERY TIME asking if you got injured at home or elsewhere. If MA can get out of paying a bill they will go after the place where you got hurt – even a friend’s or family member’s home.

I'm scared to go outside because my crutches slip on all this rain, ice and

Honestly, people still stare???!!!! I thought people had got passed the whole staring at someone in a wheelchair. I’ve never had SO many people openly gawking at me and talking about me until today (that I know of, tee hee. Let’s not think back to some of my hair color choices.) I was pushing a cart while wheeling the wheelchair. OMG must stare at that person!!! No, it wasn’t easy. Do you KNOW how difficult it is to go around corners with one hand? I was doing pretty good. Had the cart hooked on the front joint of the foot steps of the chair so I could go in straight lines. Not too bad. Had to lift the cart off every time I had to turn a corner. I saw 3 other people in wheelchairs, but they had grandchildren or husbands pushing their carts. 3 other people asked if they could help me. ALL OF THEM WERE AT LEAST 80 YEARS OLD and walking slowly themselves.

Place For People With Disabilities - 'It's Rude Not To Stare' A smart copy twist on a familiar phrase champions the brilliant athletes competing in the Paralympic Games #paralympics #games | Facebook

I had SO MANY more people push their carts out in front of me or walking out in front of me making me have to suddenly stop. PEOPLE ARE JUST SO RUDE AND UNCARING! Even at the self-checkout the Walmart employee just stood their and watched my struggling to check and bag my groceries. All my 5 items. Grrrrr. What are they being paid for anyway?

A poem i wrote. (C) SJB #disability #disabilities #poem #poetry #poetsofinstagram #SJBpoetry | Writing groups, Words, Poetic quote

There were nice moments. When I got stuck between the door to the milk jugs and my cart a lady stepped in to help. When I was leaving the store pushing the cart with my chair a young man who had already entered the store turned around to help me get to my car. He said his grandfather had been in a chair. He understood. Then when I was lifting the chair unstably into the car the elderly lady in the car next to me came to help. With my feet in so much pain my balance is shot to hell.

17 tips for talking to and acting around a person with a disability - Rare Gems Blog

Maybe it’s due to growing up with a disabling disease that most family members had. Maybe my parents just raised us better. My siblings and I ALWAYS stop to ask if someone needs help. We hold open doors. We reach for items for others. Common courtesy is gone. Now people would rather video you on their phone and laugh. People with disabilities just have to think outside the box and figure out how to do things on our own in a world built for healthy physically fit people obsessed with themselves.

Common Courtesy by Steve Gergley - FICTION on the WEB short stories

We need it too

Posted on by kkwrites8739

Sept. being chronic pain month, I’m going to broach yet another taboo topic. Sex. Humans are sexual beings. We are made in a way to enjoy it. If we weren’t supposed to enjoy it we wouldn’t have those receptors that give pleasure. This is yet one more thing to add to the list of things you often can’t do when you live with chronic pain. If you do, you often can’t enjoy it.

Sexuality: A Critical Component of Quality of Life in Chronic Disease - Nursing Clinics

There are medical pills to aid those with problems getting to arousal, keeping arousal, not being too dry, and other sexual difficulties. But if doing it hurts somewhere that has nothing to do with sexual organs, well you’re just not going to enjoy it and there’s no medical help except pain pills that often lessen the pleasurable feelings.

Stomach Pain After Sex: Why Women Experience Abdominal Pain After Sex or Intercourse

This is where I say Yay for sexual aids “toys” and even humans that can help who won’t judge. Yep, I mean prostitutes. You can buy a human who won’t judge you for your looks and doesn’t know you or care about pain, but their job is to give pleasure. It’s not talked about much even among those of us with chronic pain, but as a social worker I know such companions ARE used by people with disabilities and chronic pain. Yet society judges that you are buying it or taking advantage of the sex worker and you are bad.

If you’ve never had a disability or injury that’s caused you to lose use of an arm or hand or it causes incredible pain to use it, then you have no idea how much sex is missed. Well, not sex, but the arousal and orgasms. If you can’t arouse yourself manually how else are you supposed to? Sex toys and/or a sex worker.

I read books by an author who includes in her series, that is futuristic, government licensed companions. LC’s have rules to follow, like health care and physicals to keep their license. They aren’t supposed to use illegal drugs. However they can use drugs designed to enhance the sexual experience if the client wants it. Oftentimes LC’s will get training in the social sciences; psychology, or sex counseling for couples, etc. Yes, there are those of “lower caliber” who work the streets, but they still have those rules to follow. There are those who cater to the rich who have those degrees in psych or business. What I’m saying is, they are an accepted part of society. Accepted as something that is necessary, and lessens the amount of sex crimes too. They enjoy giving pleasure to the client. It’s a job. Many are married.

Personally, I think the world would be a better place with Licensed Companions. Even low income people can afford them. Many times people with disabilities or chronic pain are low income. There wouldn’t be the fear of judgement or catching diseases. The quality of life of a person who can’t manually give themself pleasure would increase. Happiness would increase. Some of you are thinking, well just use the sex toys. Again, if you can’t use your hand?

Michael Kaplan Sex Quotes | QuoteHD

Are people with disabilities supposed to never have or enjoy sex or those pleasurable feelings? And don’t, just don’t bring religion into the discussion. The ONLY religion that says sex is only for procreation is Christianity. I’ve only ever heard christians say you’re not supposed to enjoy it. That’s bullshit. If you actually know history then you know Romans and Greeks used prostitutes, because husbands were only allowed to have sex with their wives at certain times, etc. Many histories/cultures had prostitutes as people of status in society.

Touch, Sex and Disability in the time of COVID-19 – Handi

I’ve had the prostitute discussion and the porn discussion with many of my friends and social work colleagues. Some think there’s no way to have it without the person being abused. The hooker, stripper, or whoever HAD to be forced into it somehow. It can never be a good choice to sell yourself. I also know some women and men who enjoy their good looks and their sensuality and WANT to be a stripper, etc, enjoy giving others pleasure. Some simply enjoy that powerful feeling sex can give us.

Why should people in pain or disabled be denied feeling sexual? Modern society needs to get rid of the taboos around talking about healthy sex. Surely virtual reality will come up with something soon.

The Ultimate Guide to Sex and Disability | Shirley Ryan AbilityLab

Not complaining all the time . . .

Posted on by kkwrites8739

This Keto business takes up a lot of time. I discovered eggs are the go-to for breakfast. I’m not into eggs enough to eat them every fricken day. So I did my due diligence and googled for other keto breakfast ideas and found grain-free oatmeal (will it taste good?) and many types of granola type breakfast “cereals” to make. Again, will they TASTE GOOD and not have weird texture? I am a cereal lover. Goddess PLEASE make these taste good!!! Reading through all these online recipes I’ve discovered it will take a good amount of time doing prep, chopping, etc.

Over the years I have looked for recipes so I wouldn’t have to put in time standing at the counter doing prep. Prep HURTS! The chopping, cutting, etc doesn’t mix well with arthritis and carpal tunnel and the standing is horrible for my hips and back. I’ve bought gadgets to use to do the prep for me, but ya can’t always use said gadget AND it makes more items to wash. Standing to wash dishes also hurts.

It really sounds like I am just a whiner, huh? I really do want to change my eating habits to diabetic healthy, but I also live with a lot of daily chronic pain. Most people really don’t understand how these common household “chores” such as cooking a meal can really hurt. It sort of defeats the purpose of wanting to eat/cook healthy if you’re in too much pain after cooking to actually eat it and also can’t get back up to do the dishes and cleanup. It really makes a person just rather not eat. Seriously, this last week I’ve been going hungry instead of cooking. It’s been a bad pain week. I’ve been eating keto bomb meal replacement bars instead. And they’re expensive. Plus, I have a pantry full of white rice, white pasta, canned vegies, and canned fruit from the food shelf that I’m apparently not supposed to eat.

It’s bad enough that I feel like a loser who can’t get things done around the house and yard that NEED done and now I’m supposed to add all this cooking prep? People with medical disabilities are simply not supposed to be poor and alone. I HATE complaining about pain, but it is a part of my life. I feel so down about myself and think of people I know with cancer or other worse than I ailments who somehow manage to get up and cook, then I feel worse. I think of all the elderly and frail people in the world who are poor and alone and I really wonder why our society doesn’t offer help unless you pay or are part of a church? I’m 23 years younger than my parents who are both in huge amounts of pain. It makes me feel like a bad daughter that I can’t be there to do things for them. I know, somehow, between the both of them they manage to cook meals. I also know that afterwords in the evenings they sit in pain. A man who spent his life using his hands to make beautiful homes and other carpentry work then driving a truck now can barely hold a book at times. Mom has to wear a battery operated heating vest at all times to help the pain she takes opiates to lessen. How do they have any kind of life? They force themselves to do, to drive, to still volunteer.

Quality of life is a huge thing. Most people take it for granted. Most people don’t have to take pain medication to function. Some people take opiates illegally and make it hard for those of us who need it to get it. My chronic pain doc again mentioned medical marijuana. I can’t afford it. Aidan’s doc mentioned it to him, too. We could get the cards, but then have to drive to Brainerd to get the products, causing more pain. Right now we’ve been taking Delta 8 gummies, since I get a discount at the store. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to work there. I need the money and their products, but this last week has been difficult to work through my pain and not show it to customers. Can’t take D8 at work, or Tramadol.

So I come home and take stuff for pain and nothing gets done around the house or yard and I can’t stand up long enough to cook. At the pool I’ve gone from pushing myself to do cardio to just trying to use the pool to help alleviate pain with slow stretches. With my glucose at 116 I have to lose weight, but exercise brings on more pain so eating different is going to have to work.

Exercise Hurts | Funny Workout" Poster by BootsBoots | Redbubble

I wonder how many times I’m going to burn and cut myself with this food prep while on Tramadol? Maybe I should just take out stock in these keto bomb meal replacement bars. I am SO very grateful to Rebecca Strong Schultz for coming to help clean the house last week. Hmmm, who wants to come help do food prep? LOL, naw, that would have to be weekly and Who can afford that? It’s OK to let the house and yard work go for a while, only I know how long the floors go without a mopping. No one else needs to know. Just know, the next time you see dirty kids in a store or drive by a yard that needs cleaned up or mowed that you have no idea what those people might be dealing with: pain and/or mental health issues. Try not to judge and maybe donate to a local nonprofit. Pain sucks.

Posted on by kkwrites8739

We are all tired right now. Pandemic fatigue. Election fatigue. 2020 fatigue.

Too many things have happened this year to bring the collective human spirit either together or apart. Over 250,000 of us have died. Every one of those people had family and friends. How those people left behind manage on now is questionable.

Some have chosen to be angry and be selfish. Something that is simply meant to save lives has been made political. Especially here in the USA I think humans have lost track of what it means to be part of family and friends because we are too close together.

Some of us may live in a rural area, but it is too easy to reach out on technology at the touch of a finger; so we are still figuratively close. There are still areas in our world where humans don’t have technology. It isn’t just a quit pop of thought to grab the device in our pocket or purse.

Less than 100 years ago the idea of going over to see the neighbor took planning. A person’s day was full of doing things necessary for staying close to home and going away from home took time and miles. The use of horses, taking food with you, and maybe not even calling ahead to let them know you were coming. Yet you were welcomed upon arrival.

We honestly take it for granted now that we can reach out in a split second and talk to anyone anywhere. Even the most remote of places can, at times, be reached via 5G or satellite. We want it all and we want it now.

Humans, especially Americans, have grown accustomed to instant gratification and entitlement.

Enter a global pandemic.

Demands for an entire world to not just slow down, but . . .stop. Stay in one place. Don’t see family and friends for days, weeks, months. Figure out out to work a job from home. How to BE with each other, stuck, and falling over each other in a confined space instead of constantly being in motion away from the home.

It may feel like going backwards. We used to not leave our home base for long periods. We grew, cooked, and ate our food at home at a table. We did our schooling at home, often with anything in our surroundings being the stuff of teachable moments. Maybe one day a week a special trip was made into the nearest town for shopping, visiting, or religious escape. This was the life of our grandparents.

Life leading up to 2020 was full of not growing our food, but shopping, sometimes daily for whatever to make for supper or for fast food. Education was supplied, most often, away from home at schools. Our children spent time at daycare while we worked. Families complained of not having enough time to be together.

Suddenly 2020 says now you must all stay together constantly in one building for long periods. Children are in the way. Our jobs either figured out how to work from home or we now don’t have a job. Shopping was done by buying in bulk on one trip. Families now want time away from each other.

We have forgotten how to be. Be still. Be together. Breathe. Relax.

We are angry, sad, frustrated.

That doesn’t mean we should forget about keeping each other safe. Yes, was want to go out. Get away. See people we haven’t seen in months.

Too bad.

Because so many refused to care for how our actions affect others in the first place is why we are having to close down even more now. It’s the holiday season and as American we expect, we demand, we need to celebrate with family and friends. Yet it is that feeling of entitlement that has lead so many to not social distance.

And why so many of us have lost loved ones.

We want to get together with family this holiday season, too. We need to be close. We need to grieve. The virus doesn’t care.

I KNOW we’re used to getting what we want, but right now we MUST think of everyone and not be selfish. I want to see my family, too, but I also don’t want to possibly make them sick. I don’t want to get this.

All I can say is: I miss my brother. A holiday is only a day on the calendar and it only has as much meaning as we give it. Family CAN get together later. We can live video visit. We can use cell phones any time of any day.

Stay home. Mask up.

Please.

Don’t judge family members that fear the virus and don’t want to get together. It’s because we love you that we are staying home.

Stay safe out there.

Chasing The Rush

Posted on by kkwrites8739

I dedicate this article to all those kids looking to the summer sky and searching for the why, what, where, and when.

A tornado outbreak with cape at 5,000 feet is incredible. Give it huge inflow bands of warm air. The “fingers of God” will reach down.

You start early in the morning. The temperature and humidity are already egging you on. You could have 7 to 12 hours to wait to find the beast of a wall cloud, follow it both in the sky and on radar. The sky begins to turn green and your mind spins. The air steadies at ground level. You can feel the damp air on your skin and smell the storm ready to explode. When the funnel lowers, get those cameras ready. Goosebumps arrive on every cell of skin on my body and my spine is raging with electricity of my own. You can feel the presence of ethereal power in the air.

When you can see the cone circulating from above and the radar is pink and extreme warned is MY adrenaline rush.

There are hundreds, or maybe thousands, of people who feel this way and call themselves Tornado Chasers. As kids we watched the sky and loved the beauty of clouds. Some of us as children were involved in tornadoes and instead of developing fear developed fascination. Some are highly trained meteorologists driving for that scientific knowledge equipped with weather machines and computers to collect data. Some chasers are simple hobbyists who only chase on a Sunday in their own locations, and some of us will travel hundreds of miles to find the right circumstances that stir the gods to throw up a tornado. ALL of us should, and most do, have the respect for Mother Nature to learn how to spot and chase safely.

Sometimes storms can be predicted days before an outbreak, but when you’re standing outside and your skin begins to prick up, is when you “know” it’s time. The humidity, the temperature, the darkening skies; if they don’t get your motor running then you’re not a lover of storms. You can have all the “should be” information telling you one is coming, but that is why tornadoes are studied. We still can’t tell when, why, or where. The time spent anticipating the storm can be quite a build-up. You watch the radar and you do the math with the mesoscale, but there is never a guarantee that a tornado will show up.

Despite the unknown, we chase. We love it; every step of the day. I recommend any reputable chaser to attend the NWS SKYWARN Storm Spotter Program. … SKYWARN® is a volunteer program with between 350,000 and 400,000 trained severe weather spotters. These volunteers help keep their local communities safe by providing timely and accurate reports of severe weather to the National Weather Service. Our priority is to keep people safe, especially in our “own back yard,” our communities that we live in. Storms are beauty in motion, but a tornado can rip apart lives. There is knowledge you should know BEFORE you set out on the road.

The pros of having the home-court advantage are knowing the local terrain and roads. If you don’t have a team of at least 3 people – ideally 4, you may put yourself into a dangerous situation. Your teammates need to trust each other. I mean Trust with a capital T, because you are putting your lives into each other’s hands. The driver needs to trust the navigator to find the safest roads while at the same time putting you on the track of your target. The cameraperson needs to trust the driver, so they don’t have to watch the road at all, but only concentrate on getting the best shots of the storm/tornado. Everyone needs to trust that the goal might be getting a good picture or video, but everyone’s lives and safety come before ANY picture.

The entire team might have differing ideas of where to go during a large storm system. Some team members like to stay safer than others. Meaning they want to stay at a longer distance away from the actual tornado. Others follow their adrenaline and their gut or depend on years of meteorological knowledge to find the best path and know they can get close and still stay safe. I can guarantee there will be disagreements among the team. Try to keep team camaraderie up, get enough sleep, bring your snacks, and know each other well.

Image may contain: cloud, sky, outdoor and nature

Which team member is best at judging how fast a tornado is moving and usually determines from the storm’s wind speed, the wind’s direction, and the other involved winds about where to go? Which member actually understands the science of the meteorology and can decide if conditions are right? Who is best at reading a radar AND reading local maps? Who has the eyes that can shift quickly to catch many motions at a time? All this and more is necessary to put together a safe team. Yes, you need to be able to “read” the clouds, but you need to read each other, too. Decisions often need to be made in seconds: here’s a road to turn on, a hill will be coming up, that area has too many trees and little visibility, the base of the tornado just turned, where’s our safe route and other types of questions need fast determinations with little to no argument.

Does your team have a team leader or is every question up for debate? Often this is up to who’s car are you in or who has spent the most money on the trip, and those shouldn’t be determining factors if you make a few guidelines and rules before ever starting to chase. Hopefully you have someone, or two, on the team experienced and trained for medical emergencies. Not only may one of you become injured, but if you are the first people on the scene in a town or at a home after a storm has passed it simply isn’t up for debate; stop to help. The adrenaline turns sober as you find destroyed places and possibly dead bodies. It is part of the job. Staying psychologically healthy after such incidents is also important to the team.

You just can’t make decisions based on emotions while you’re out there. While some say the adrenaline rush can cause you to make hasty and ill-thought choices, the best decisions are based on facts and not on “I’ve got to have that picture” or “Oh my god I’m so afraid.” Someone has to be the calm in the storm person; the type of person who could run a busy ER during a mass casualty. Fear is not a good decision maker, but you also need to acknowledge your feelings and be able to set them aside. Yelling only gets you so far to be heard and you can’t hold a grudge against a decision made and voted for. Personally, I think the best way to be able to make informed decisions is by being prepared.

Of course you need wi-fi capable electronics. Chasing takes money. No, you don’t need to trick-out your vehicle with all the latest in meteorological equipment, but you need gas money and you need capable radar. Getting stuck in the middle of nowhere with an aged cell phone isn’t ideal. A proper, if not the latest, level of smart phone, iPad, or even a good laptop is often your guide. If the radar you’re watching has a lag in time, that’s no good. If you have to keep re-logging on or restarting your electronics you could put the team in danger. You ARE going to go to places where wi-fi is sketchy, cell towers may be downed, and at times there’s a hundred miles or more between towns. Where I spot, the towers are far away and only service one phone company or the other. When your radar is down you depend on training, preparation, and each other.

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It’s a LOT of driving. Being cramped together in a hot muggy vehicle for hours or days can drive the best of us nuts. The atmosphere inside the car can get sketchy, too. Hot, hungry, and tired chasers can turn on each other if you’re not prepared. This means spending more money. Make sure you have enough liquids for everyone to stay hydrated, yet don’t argue about “potty” stops. If you have cigarette smokers on your team you need to make some sort of deal about how often to stop for a cig break BEFORE you leave. Cranky smokers are no fun, but if you have a destination to get to the non-smokers don’t want to stop. It also sucks up more gas if you use the air conditioner in the car. You simply can NOT try to be a beauty queen and a chaser. You’re going to want to wear clothes that can get wet, muddy, or even torn. If you wear make-up it’s going to smear, smudge, and sweat off. Bring along “small” warm weather clothes, such as just a T-shirt or tank top to wear when it’s hot and humid, but you need warmer clothes for after the storms and during the chilly evenings. I also recommend agreeing to buy your own meals on the road so there’s no argument over who owes how much. Bring sturdy and sustainable snacks.

You need gas, liquids, various layers of clothes, snacks, good electronics, emergency medical supplies, and possibly bathroom items if you’re chasing for more than a day. This all needs to be packed tightly in small packs, because it’s going to take up space. You definitely learn how to live sparsely. Bring the basics of the necessities.  Bring spending money for hotels, more snacks and liquids, etc. A cooler takes up room. Get used to warm liquids. If you’re addicted to caffeine your soda will be warm and your coffee will be room temp. Seriously, deal with it. If you’re used to looking good, get used to looking rough. Bring a hat. It holds your hair out of your face and rain out of the way.

Oh let’s see, what else to bring? Wear a pair of shoes and bring a dry pair. Same with clothes. Bring rain gear if you have it. Long hair needs scrunchies. Sun glasses. Tylenol. Tools come in handy for car breakdowns. Orange cones, road flares, or other auto emergency supplies are nice, but not necessary. Gloves, orange vests, eye goggles for protection, and possibly even a helmet (in case of hail) are all included in MY personal kit. It is safest to use cones or flashing lights to warn other drivers that your vehicle has pulled over and people are milling around. I can’t stress enough how important batteries for flashlights, NOAA radios, etc are. Remember all your electronics’ cords and charging supplies. If you’re using a video camera bring extra batteries, lenses, extra of anything that could possibly be needed plus dry rags to wipe screens, lenses, etc.

You NEED a good driver. You don’t want someone driving who has only been driving for a couple years ever or has no experience driving in adverse weather conditions. It’s easy for the most experienced driver to hydroplane on standing water or not know whether to drive into or away from certain wind variables. You’re going to want to speed. You may HAVE to drive at high speeds to get away from danger. The driver needs to know what conditions are safe and when to pull over to let hail or torrential rain go by. Your driver needs to be able to drive on dirt or mud. Your driver should also know the feel of the vehicle they’re driving. If they aren’t driving their own vehicle you need to give them time to drive the one they will be several times prior to any chase. Do the brakes need to be stomped on or just a soft touch? Does the steering wheel tend to pull? Does this person know the engine and its knocks and quirks?

The navigator needs to know how to give directions that are coming up before the need to do them in a calm manner. This person is often watching road signs zoom by, so you always know your location, while they are simultaneously watching a radar and watching funnels outside the window.

In my opinion this is too much for one person and I like having a team of three or four to break up roles. Good eyes need to watch equipment and tornadoes. The navigators need to be able to make those quick decisions about what direction to drive. Knowing your GPS coordinates is great, but second to that you need to know your physical location to a town so you can notify the authorities of tornadoes on the ground. What’s near to you; a farm building, a nestle of birch trees, what can you see to tell someone else who isn’t with you? I am not the type of person that can look and know what direction North is, South, or whatever. I’m not the main navigator, but I am good at reading the radar and maps. I can tell you where the storm is going to be at any given time or where we need to be safe, but I can’t tell you what that last road sign said. I’m too excited about the radar and I have eye problems. The Main Navigator always needs to have a safe route in mind .

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The person with the camera needs to know the camera. This sounds like, duh, but sometimes you just can’t see out your window and need to pass the camera to someone with a better vantage point. Having everyone on the team know the camera is great, but The Cameraman gets the best shots. They understand how to operate the camera in low or high light, what speeds or pixels, in wet conditions, and all that technical stuff. Some chasers use a simple phone camera, and some have expensive high-tech models. Some chaser teams have cameras hooked to the vehicles sending information to the team via computer. Some teams live-stream video to social media and send pictures to news outlets or the National Weather Service. So, the videographer needs a calm strong voice and a steady hand. I’d like to mention that you are often wiggling around in the compact and confined space of the interior of the vehicle. Being in good physical shape so you’re not getting sore from wiggling, twisting, etc, is a bonus. Sometimes team members will work-out together to stay in shape.

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The most dangerous part of chasing is getting into traffic. Who makes the worst traffic during a tornado? Other storm chasers. There are times in the Midwest Plains of the US when there are hundreds of storms chasers on the road for the same outbreak. Those who just want a nice picture should be considerate of the scientific crews. GET OFF THE ROAD AND LET THEM THROUGH! Yes, I am yelling that, because getting caught in a line of chasers going 25 mph because they’re “close enough” isn’t just frustrating it’s dangerous. When you see the trucks and vans outfitted with scientific gear, they know there is a tornado nearby and you are putting everyone in harm’s way, and they need to get to where they’re going. They are getting science data to prevent future storm deaths. If you don’t pull over and let them through, you are directly interfering with the saving of lives. THE question is; why do some supercells form tornadoes and some don’t.

In the past there has been the TIV: Tornado Intercept Vehicle run by people filming for an Imax movie, and they were also carrying science equipment for the TWISTEX team: a 40 to sometimes 80 vehicle team of tornado scientists. Reed Timmer and the TVN: Tornado Video Nation team has also done incredible work carrying scientific equipment on his Dominator tornado intercept vehicle. The weather engineer, Tim Samaras, and his team did nonstop research until they were killed in a tornado. Let teams like this through.

Those teams were professionals. They had been chasing for dozens of years or decades. We still lost the TWISTEX team. This IS dangerous. There is a distinction between spotters and chasers. Spotters are watching the storms and reporting to local authorities and the National Weather Service about local extreme weather. Chasers are also spotters, but often the chasing is a weekend hobby. Some chasers do it as extra income from the documentation or even run Tornado Chasing bus tours. Spotters usually see the tornado, call it in, and leave the area for safety. Chasers stay in the danger zone often only 100 yards or so from the core or in the RFD winds. Spotters can be in danger too, though. Downbursts, multiple-vortex tornadoes, microbursts, intense damaging hail cores, flash flooding, bow echoes or derechoes with straight-line winds, lightning, debris, fog banks, high-precipitation or rain-wrapped storms, and tornadoes at night can all put spotters in danger if they’re not trained.

Most chasers and spotters are not professional meteorologists. Knowing a bit about weather can only enhance your experience. Being able to report certain aspects of a storm at its location is something the weatherman back at the newsroom needs. Reporting factual weather details to the NWS so they can put out watches and warnings and local cities can turn on the sirens is part of being a Certified NSW Skywarn Storm Spotter. If you want to be a reputable spotter, you need to know certain terminology; the basics at least.

There are a lot of good reputable ways to learn about extreme weather. Pick up used meteorology textbooks, study mesoscale discussions on the NWS website, attend workshops and conventions. The National Weather Service and NOAA both have a plethora of websites and links to learn from. National Public Radio hosts informational discussions. There is no reason for anyone to not be educated before spotting or chasing. I highly recommend the NWS Skywarn Spotter training and certification, but don’t ONLY depend on that one training then head out into a storm. Avoid mayhem. Get trained.

Good Tornado Chasers don’t need drugs or alcohol. Our “high” is chasing. It’s ecstasy. Other times of the year we watch TV shows about chasing, gear up ourselves and our vehicles, and even chase other types of severe weather such as blizzards and hurricanes. Some people want to jump off a building with a bungee rope. Just put a radar screen full of extreme weather in front of us. We can’t only see it; we can smell it. It’s in our blood. We must watch. If we can’t watch from our cars, we watch from our living rooms on laptops. Some of us have expensive computers to help organize data and talk with other chasers and weather networks. You may call it an addiction, but for us it’s pure fascination and reverence. When day turns black and all light is gone; Stay safe out there! The power is incredible.

Pictures via my own or another well-written article about chasing:

14 unbelievable photos that capture the chaos of storm chasing

https://www.weather.gov/SKYWARN

https://www.weather.gov/oun/spotterglossary#Introduction

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-storm-chaser-changed-face-tornado-science-180968688/

For the Men

Posted on by kkwrites8739

“Eleven states have passed laws restricting a woman’s access to abortion, with some states approving near-total bans of the procedure altogether. Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio and Utah have all passed abortion-related legislation that has been signed by their Republican governors. Lousiana’s Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards also signed a bill restricting abortions.

Alabama’s law, signed by Governor Kay Ivey, is likely the strictest in the nation as it makes it a felony for doctors to perform abortions even in cases of rape and incest. Laws passed in Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Ohio ban abortion after a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can happen as early as six weeks into pregnancy (before many women are even aware they are pregnant). Less severe laws like those in Indiana and North Dakota ban the use of clamps and forceps during second-trimester abortions.

According to a new FiveThirtyEight analysis, which examined all 50 state of the state speeches given by governors in 2019, the term “reproductive health” was not uttered once by a Republican. Meanwhile, the term appeared in approximately 21.7 percent of Democratic speeches.

https://www.newsweek.com/republican-governors-reproductive-health-abortion-laws-1443902

The U.S. Supreme Court, in Roe v. Wade, made it clear that states may not ban abortion outright before the fetus is determined to be viable, recognized by the medical community as around 24 weeks’ gestation. In addition, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Planned Parenthood v. Casey that states may not place an undue burden on a woman’s right to choose an abortion. Like laws that attempt to ban abortion at 20 weeks’ gestation, bills banning abortion after detection of a fetal heartbeat are intended as a direct challenge to these U.S. Supreme Court decisions.

Let me be razor clear why all these states are even proposing abortion bans right now, even if they don’t get passed or they remain being argued over in session for long periods. They WANT to be taken to the Supreme Court. Their target IS Roe-vs-Wade. They want people to think that their are a lot of people who want to overturn it.

THERE ARE NOT.

Polls being done put Americans in total at about 50% in favor of keeping Roe just where it’s at and another 30% in favor of keeping it but tweaking it just a bit, and the last 20 % being unsure OR for overturning. Even polls among republicans show 1/3 in favor of keeping Roe and another 1/3 in favor of keeping it but tweaking it, with only the last 1/3 being the radical fundamentalists who want it overturned.

Many of these abortion bills are called “heartbeat” bills. How do you detect a heartbeat in an unborn fetus? (I’ll explain later that at the gestational stage these bills cover it is not a fetus, it is still an embryo.) By using a VERY INTRUSIVE and embarrassing measure at 6 weeks:

Ohio required an abortion provider to use an abdominal ultrasound to detect a fetal heartbeat and banned abortion when the pregnancy has progressed to 12 weeks and a fetal heartbeat is detected. North Dakota went even further, passing the most stringent anti-choice legislation in the country—a bill that bans abortion as soon as a fetal heartbeat can be detected using “acceptable medical practice,” which is approximately six weeks through the use of a transvaginal ultrasound.

At least sixteen states (Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia) have introduced measures to ban abortion as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

MN, where I live, is what concerns me. I am 50 years old and Peri-menopausal. No I don’t plan on getting pregnant any time soon, but this is where I live and as long as I do it is no one’s business to tell me or any other woman what to do with my/her health, rights, or body. I will fight for my fellow women.

Minnesota Fetal Heartbeat Abortion Ban (HF 271)  , proposed  Jan 22, 2019

Minnesota Fetal Heartbeat Abortion Ban (SF 869) , proposed Feb 7, 2019

Minnesota Fetal Heartbeat Abortion Ban (HF 2101) , proposed March 7 2019

Minnesota Fetal Heartbeat Abortion Ban (SF 2245) , proposed March 11 2019

Some reproductive rights groups argue that the term “heartbeat” bill is a misnomer, since the fetus does not yet have a heart at six weeks’ gestation — the cardiac activity detectable at that time comes from tissue called the fetal pole. Up to the 10th week after fertilization the pregnancy is called an embryo and it still has no brain or spinal cord. Most malformations (birth defects) occur during this period when organs are forming. During this period, the embryo is most vulnerable to the effects of drugs, radiation, and viruses. Not until after 10 weeks is it called a fetus. It is still not viable, it can NOT live outside the uterus.

At about 14 weeks the sex of the fetus can be identified. Between 16 to 20 weeks the mother can finally feel the fetus move. Sometimes for women who don’t have regular periods, are overweight or don’t know why they are gaining weight – this is the first sign that they are pregnant. Not until after 24 weeks does the fetus have a chance of survival outside the uterus. The lungs continue to mature until near the time of delivery. The brain accumulates new cells throughout pregnancy and the first year of life after birth, but the people who want ALL fetuses born no matter what don’t care about their health care after they are born. Even if they need extreme medical care for underdeveloped lung and brain problems.

Nor do they care if the mother has medical issues during pregnancy. Make her suffer through it, no matter what, and deliver that fetus. Even if she KNOWS her body isn’t doing its job to give the fetus the required nutrients or safety/cushioning or whatever. Even if that mother feels like shit knowing her body is harming her child from her own medical issues. It takes two people to GET pregnant, even IF the pregnancy was a “mistake.” However, now what she’s going through is all on her. REMEMBER, THE ACTUAL TERM, REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH, NEVER GETS MENTIONED!

This issue is all about being educated and informed. It is NOT about being pro or anti birth or children or about killing. Those words are for the fanatics and lunatics and the super-religious. In NO way do politics and religion belong in the same debate for ANY topic. THIS is a medical and personal topic.

When it comes to abortion some people have morals and some people don’t. I have known women who use it as birth control. Got pregnant? Oh, go get an abortion. Got pregnant again? Just go have another abortion. Never feeling any emotion about it. Oh, had too many so that there’s so much scar tissue that you can’t get pregnant any more? Oh well, never wanted kids anyway. I have also known SO many more women that have had abortions that have felt the weight of the world on their shoulders at having had to get an abortion that they thought it would emotionally kill them to do it. The levels of guilt and self-hatred, shame, and disgust and depression left them in despair for years, but they had such heart-wrenching reasons for having to do it: usually being in violently abusive relationships, being molested by family members, being gang-raped, other rape, severe medical issues, or severe poverty or no medical or health care.

People of color, queer, and low-income people are who are disproportionately likely to seek abortion care. Then add in people with cognitive or physical/medical disabilities. And now these new laws could allow women who terminate pregnancies to be charged with murder!

Think about the barely mobile disabled person with cognitive disabilities who says yes to sex, but doesn’t really even know what sex is. That person can in no way raise a child, but will be forced to go through the pregnancy not understanding what is going on with her body, often doing things that put the fetus at risk. If she does, she will be arrested for causing the fetus harm? Many LGTBQ+ are beaten/raped just to “show them what they’re ‘supposed’ to be,” by ignorant assholes. Now they must carry a baby even though they look like a man? I could go on with the horrible stories. The fanatics don’t care who got pregnant or how or what will happen to the child after it is born. All they want to do is toss around scare-words without real facts.

“Late-term” abortions are generally understood to take place during or after the 21st to 24th week of gestation, which is late in the second trimester. That gestational period roughly corresponds to the point of “fetal viability” or when a fetus might be able to survive outside the womb with or without medical assistance. However, there is no precise medical or legal definition of “late-term,” and many doctors and scientists avoid that language, calling it imprecise and misleading. They say “late-term” may imply that these abortions are taking place when a woman has reached or passed a full-term pregnancy, which is defined as starting in the 37th week.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1.3 percent of abortions were performed at or greater than 21 weeks of gestation in 2015. In contrast, 91.1 percent were performed at or before 13 weeks and 7.6 percent at 14 to 20 weeks.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) said in a statement released this week that pregnant women may experience conditions such as “premature rupture of membranes and infection, preeclampsia, placental abruption, and placenta accreta” late in pregnancy that may endanger their lives.

 

“Women in these circumstances may risk extensive blood loss, stroke, and septic shock that could lead to maternal death. Politicians must never require a doctor to wait for a medical condition to worsen and become life-threatening before being able to provide evidence-based care to their patients, including an abortion,” the ACOG said.

In a paper published in 2013 by Foster and Katrina Kimport on women who got abortions for reasons other than a danger to life or health or a fetal anomaly, they cited logistical delays such as difficulty finding a provider, raising funds for the procedure and travel costs.

Foster and Kimport described five “profiles” of women in the study: “They were raising children alone, were depressed or using illicit substances, were in conflict with a male partner or experiencing domestic violence, had trouble deciding and then had access problems, or were young and [experiencing their first pregnancy].”

“one woman was told by her doctors that something in her 20-week scan looked suspicious but it wasn’t until 24 weeks that it was clear the fetus had significant abnormalities.”

(Oops, I forgot to add what the article was that I took the above quotes from. My bad.)

Humiliation, agony, and the risk of sterility or death. Is that what we want to go back to? That’s what women went through before Roe-vs-Wade in the 50’s and 60’s. Back room abortions with dirty medical instruments or at home do-it-yourself by a coat hanger. Just because they want to make it illegal doesn’t mean women will stop doing it. Women will still want to keep their fortune 500 jobs. They can’t do that if they get pregnant. Ah-ha!

There it is. The Ah Ha moment. That’s what this is all about! Men trying to put women in our place. Take away our power. Get us out of the business and other work-places so men can be back in charge. They want to go back to the 50’s when women met them at the front door with their evening drink and dinner on the table.

That will actually be impossible to do. No one in the middle class down can live like that. It’s mandatory for family’s to have both parents working just to pay the bills. Think about having kids? You’d better not have a part time or a low-income job if you have a kid or two. Need to dish out $5,000 for an abortion? Insurance will only pay for it if it’s medically necessary.

I would really like to see someone do a poll/survey on the middle class to upper class to find out how many of them have abortions -vs- the middle to lower class, where most surveys are usually done via social services or Planned Parenthood. They wouldn’t have to scrape and scrimp and save every penny for months just to afford the abortion. They could just think, “oh shit I’m pregnant, oops! Better get an abortion before mommy and daddy find out. Boom. Done.”  Plus, the family doc of rich people isn’t going to rat out some little rich kid. He knows who pays for his “coke.”

OK, sorry, there’s MY “ism,” richism. I know, that’s not a word. There’s racism, sexism, I have richism. I’m rich-ist. I have issues with rich people. Rich people who don’t use their wealth to help society in any way, or only to make themselves “look” good.

Back to the issue at hand: abortion IS an elitist issue. It is one more way for those with to push down those without. You think rich people are going to be going to jail for having illegal abortions? Of course not.

It’s also a sexist issue for sure. Rapists even get rights to the kids they spawn from their rapes these days. You can NOT convince me that’s OK. It is NOT OK to force a woman to have the child from being raped. This is one more thing that a man truly can not in any way possible remotely begin to understand. A man can be raped, but a man can not become pregnant from being raped. Have to live with it growing inside you, like the rapist is again inside you, but not for minutes this time – this time he is inside you for 9 MONTHS! Then, if you don’t give it up for adoption, you live with this child possibly for the rest of your life; remembering. If you are unlucky enough to live in one of THOSE states, you might also be FORCED to have your rapist in your life, have to see him, talk to him, etc, forever, as he is allowed to be the rightful father of your child and receive parental rights and visits. You will never be allowed to forget your pain, humiliation, and how he broke your will and spirit as the state you live in goes on to do so day after day.

Mind you, I am pro-life for myself, but pro-choice for all other women. I would never tell anyone what to do in any situation and no one else has that right either. I have never been faced with that particular scenario, and I have no idea what I’d do. Thankfully, MN would never make me deal with the father of a child from rape.

I did, however, have to make the abortion decision. Being a social worker, I knew that fetal alcohol syndrome gets part of its parts from the man’s sperm, and I became pregnant by an alcoholic. I was a pretty bad social drinker myself at the time. I had also just been in an auto accident and I was in a pretty bad amount of pain. Being born with a rare genetic disease, I also had that to consider. So, given all of that what was I about to pass on to my child? Should I or not take pain medicine? How much had I drank before I learned I was pregnant? How badly did the auto accident damage the embryo? I had several x-rays in the ER, did they do any damage?

Of course as soon as I told my boyfriend, he dumped me and took off. I quote, “I don’t want a kid who’s a freak with your genetic disease.” I was hot enough to date, but…  So, now I was also alone, single again. Guess what? I also lost my job! The accident mixed with my disease had caused 5 problems in my spine and nerve damage in my shoulder. I was super depressed and in a LOT of pain. Things that are not good for developing fetuses. Since I couldn’t pay rent, you’d better believe I was thinking of abortion. I had no idea, but was thinking every minute of what kind of damage my injured body was doing to my child. I wasn’t taking anything for the pain since that would cause more damage. I began spotting and was afraid I might lose the baby. It was then that I knew for sure that I couldn’t have an abortion.

Despite everything that could be wrong with the baby I knew I would love him. It would be against everything I believe in as a nature based pagan who reveres life to abort this thing growing inside me. If my body didn’t naturally abort it for having something wrong with it, then it was meant to be my child. That is MY belief. I don’t expect anyone else to follow my belief or force it on anyone else.

I had a bad pregnancy. Many medical issues. I was in the hospital twice with infections. Due to my disease, my son’s kicks broke 3 of my ribs. I didn’t have enough amniotic fluid. My blood pressure was too high. I was constantly in pain from injuries. I was depressed. There are many reasons a woman thinks of abortion or a doctor suggests it.

He is 20 years old now. It’s been a rough ride from all of his medical needs, but I do love him with all of my soul. I will fight for women everywhere to have their rights though. NO ONE should ever tell another person what they can and can’t do unless it comes to harming life willfully and with evil intent and forethought. AND…yet with that; what defines life? Humans can’t even agree on that!

 

There are over 100 definitions of life have been proposed, with most focusing on a handful of key attributes such as replication and metabolism. Virologists: seven processes that supposedly define life: movement, respiration, sensitivity, growth, reproduction, excretion and nutrition. Chemists: polymers – namely nucleic acids (the building blocks of DNA), proteins and polysaccharides – virtually the entire diversity of life is built. Astrobiologists: microorganisms capable of surviving in extreme environments. 

Technologists: artificial life can involve biologists creating new organisms in labs by stitching together parts of two or more existing life forms. But it can also be a little more abstract. There are even teams that are beginning to explore the creation of robots with life-like traits. Ever since the 1990s, when Thomas Ray’s Tierra computer software appeared to demonstrate the synthesis and evolution of digital “life forms”, researchers have been trying to create computer programs that truly simulate life.

Philosophers: Maybe the things we think are essential are really just peculiar to life on Earth. After all, everything from bacteria to lions is derived from a single common ancestor, meaning that on our chart of life in the Universe, we only really have one data point.

In the words of Sagan: “Man tends to define in terms of the familiar. But the fundamental truths may not be familiar.”

What a tragedy it would be if in the 2020s the new Mars rover trundles straight past a Martian, simply because it does not recognise it as being alive.

“The definition can actually hinder the search for novel life,” says Cleland. “We need to get away from our current concept, so that we are open to discovering life as we don’t know it.”

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20170101-there-are-over-100-definitions-for-life-and-all-are-wrong

 

Put A Fork In Me

Posted on by kkwrites8739

Um, ya. It’s supposedly the first day of Spring in 10 days. We got 6 more inches of snow up here in the Nort’land in the last 24 hours. Supposed to get more on Wednesday. Yup. This IS Spring for us. Mm hmm. We’ve all had about enough now, though. Really. We give up. This winter of the 2018-2019 season has been a doozy. We. Are. Done.

I live in Minnesota. This is not what you would call the normal winter for us, but it’s close. Yes, we always have snowy winters. Yes, we always have cold winters. However, this winter has been ridiculous. The usual would be some parts of MN getting a lot of snow and some parts getting the usual amounts and some parts less. Over the last 20 years or so, due to Climate Change, the norm has been less snow and MAYBE 5 or so days of minus 40 below zero degrees Fahrenheit temperatures without the wind chill.

Oh, SO not this year. THIS year decided to blow us for a loop. This year decided to remind us just what a MN winter used to be. This year decided to remind us what it means to be a hearty Minnesotan. This year decided we needed to remember why Babe the Blue Ox is Blue and why Paul Bunyan is so friggin tall.

Paul’s tall so he can see over the damned snow banks and Babe’s blue because it’s 55 degrees F BELOW F*CKING ZERO! That’s 75 F below zero with the wind chill for you warm people who never had the balls to step foot in this frozen hell. Yep. It really got that darn cold this winter. More. Than. Once. Consequences? Extreme cold blamed for 17 deaths in the Midwest thanks to the polar vortex. (www.weather.com) That was early on in December. We still had 2 more months of polar temps to go.

Aaaand just how much snow did we get this year, you ask? Well, I’m 5 feet 1 inch tall. The snow piled on the sides of my driveway is over my head. When I have to leave my driveway I inch my way out VERY carefully and very slowly to make sure no one is coming down the road that I can’t see, and who can’t see me hiding behind the snow pile. It’s like a game of hide and peek; to see all the cars doing the same thing coming out of the other driveways. There are places in MN where they got 6 1/2 feet of snow.

Of course we can’t JUST have the snow. We get freezing slushy icy slippery messes that cause wonderful driving conditions. We started the season in October with freezing rainstorms that left slick layers of ice covering everything. I had just paid $100 to ready my snow thrower for the season. I never got to use it. It remains out in the yard, frozen to the spot where I unloaded it the same day and we got hit by an ice storm that night. Heavy snow and slushy conditions were blamed for 3 fatal Midwestern accidents before December had ended. Now that MN body shops are breaking out the bubbly, we finally have warmer temps in sight. We should be celebrating, right?

With 40 degrees Fahrenheit expected within the week you would expect us to be celebrating. Not yet. With trepidation, now we must haul sump pumps down into our basements and lie in wait. It’s coming. Remember I said another storm is coming on Wednesday? It might be snow. It might be rain. Most likely it will be a mix of both, then freeze solid after the sun goes down. The Big Melt is coming. When you have this much snow and ice sitting on the frozen ground where is it going to go? They say 1 to 2 inches of rain is possible in places. Where is all this liquid moisture going to go? Exactly where is the glacier in my yard going to go?

Storm drains in the streets have snow and at LEAST an inch or two of ice covering them. Driveways? Even if you’ve been diligently shoveling or plowing them after each snow or ice storm, driveways are still covered with several inches of frozen tundra. Houses have snow packed up the outside walls several feet high. Except for the places smart people have hopefully dug out around the pipes and things that vent toxic fumes and things out of their houses. I know I can’t open my front door due to the snow comes up about 3 feet high. Ya, my boy was lazy and never shoveled the steps. So, ya, um…all this snow and ice so close to the houses is going to go…where? You guessed it! Right into your basement! Fun, right?

I don’t have a sump pump.

Here’s the latest report I’ve read and why I think I might be screwed: “The snowpack over the entire upper midwest remained in place or increased over the past two weeks. The amount of snow water equivalent in this snowpack is in the upper 10 percent of historical records over a widespread area…leading to high flood potential for many river basins in the area. At least half of our forecast points now indicate at least a 50% probability of reaching major flood stage.”

I don’t personally live ON the lake. I live about 4 to 5 blocks away from Lake Bemidji. I’m very happy that the lake is wayyyyy downhill. However, I have many family and friends who live on or near the 11,842 lakes and 92,000 miles of rivers, streams, and wetlands in MN. I’ve seen the Mighty Mississippi at flood stage. She IS mighty indeed. The town I live in, well the river flows through us. We are called “the first town on the Mississippi.” We are “sister” cities with New Orleans; the last city on the Mississippi. The headwaters of Ole Miss begins 35 1/2 miles from us. So, yes a lot of the snow and ice will go to feed her, along with all the water from 31 other states.

Right now though, I just don’t want all the frozen white stuff to go into my basement. I’m tired of “hide and peek.” I’m tired of sliding around on the ice, on my tires and on my feet. I’m SO very tired of being c’c’c’cold. My checking account is wondering where my money went. (All to heating costs!) Worst of all, though, my poor old body just wants to curl up into the fetal position and yell, “NO MORE, PLEASE?!” I live with a genetic disabling rare disease that causes chronic pain and the cold of this winter has exacerbated all that pain and increased it to monumental proportions. I’ve tried to help with shoveling and it hurts! I’ve fallen on the ice and it hurts! I can’t afford to turn up the heat and it hurts! I’ve been stuck in the snow so many times and have dug and slid and sug and slid and it hurts! Now flooding is coming? Ah, c’mon?!

Put a fork in me, I’m done!

 

Addendum as of 3/14/19: All this liquid has decided it wants to be inside my house via the basement. Spent 5 hours in the middle of the night using the wet/dry vac. I had just taken my folder of warranties/instruction manuals for various items out to look for something last week and just left it on the floor. MY bad. Now all those papers are spread out all over the place left to dry out. 6′ x 5′ area rug ruined. As things dry I’ll see what else is ruined.

NOT a happy camper.

Save Lives Not Guns

Posted on by kkwrites8739

Just have to say it, again. For those who don’t get it. I still haven’t heard a politician say they are going to come and take away the guns from law abiding citizens. I HAVE heard that they and over 75% of the law abiding citizens in this country want to ban bump stocks, semi-auto, and automatic weapons from anyone but the police and military, instill background checks for purchasing a gun at ANY time a gun is purchased by ANYONE, make it more difficult if not impossible for people who have been convicted of any violent crime (including domestic violence or rape) to be able to purchase a gun weather or not they SEEM to be a law abiding citizen now, have a person who has HAD a diagnoses of an emotional or behavioral disorder be tested prior to purchasing a gun, but nowhere have I seen or heard that anyone would be coming into anyone’s homes to take away anyone’s guns that they legally have now. THAT would be illegal and unconstitutional and only people who don’t understand jurisprudence think that way.

The police already have voluntary programs where people can come to places, usually police stations, and hand in weapons/guns with no questions asked. This could take place if/when new gun policies ever happen. OFTEN these programs also give money to those who hand in the weapons. Also, many countries that have already done what people in the US want with these new gun policies, is to grandfather in the people who already have those types of weapons, but make sure they are registered to law abiding citizens. They are already supposed to be, right? Now all you have to do is tell the people you register with that you’ve added the bump stock, so IF the weapon is stolen they know it was already altered.

So, no. We don’t want to ban guns for law abiding citizens. Knowing who has altered their gun, who has guns, and knowing only the police and military have the correct heavy-powered weapons to fight the heavily powered bad guys seems OK though, doesn’t it?

The gun nuts keep telling us that they “know how to use their guns.” So why would a legal gun owner need an automatic weapon to protect their home? If they are such a good shot and SO good at using their weapon, if someone broke into their home and they never get nervous and are just as trained as the cops are in such a situation wouldn’t they be able to shoot as well as a cop and handle the situation accordingly the same way with just the same weapon as a street cop and hit their target?

I see no reason for every day Joe’s to own semi or automatic weapons or use bump stocks. No, not for hunting either. What is sporting about hunting with them? Either you can make your shot without them or you are a shitty shot, dude, and have one small penis. Don’t try to come at me with “what do you know about guns, liberal piece of shit.” Last time I shot a 22 caliber was about 5 years ago and I’m still an expert marksman. I’ve got the trophies to prove it. Just don’t own a gun. Don’t want one in my home. I do enjoy shooting though.

If I had one in my home, it wouldn’t do me any good if someone broke in to attack me. They would already have a gun IN their hand. How would I have time to go get mine? Duh, I’d already be dead. Really, IF you store your guns the way you’re supposed to; away from the ammo. The gun is supposed to be either locked in a cabinet or the ammo is, and/or stored up high away from any children. How would you get to it if you are about to be robbed?

If you are storing a loaded gun in your nightstand while you sleep, well THAT’s how the robbers in this country are getting away with suing the people they are trying to rob!!!!!! Because you were breaking the law! That’s also why so many youth have guns available to them for accidents, school shootings, and suicide; loaded guns in desks, closets, and drawers.

Even IF you have a license to carry, that does NOT mean everyone in your family does. When you take that weapon off it is supposed to be LOCKED UP. If it’s not and it’s used by any family member in an accident, school shooting, or suicide then I hope you feel like shit, because you are shit.

We need to fight the people who have guns illegally, not each other. Get it? We need to save lives. Get it?

Now, does anyone else want to send me a meme on Facebook about “They can take my guns out of my cold dead hands?” or “They want to take our guns away!”

Isms, White Privilege, & 1st World Problems

Posted on by kkwrites8739

I recognize that I am happy to know that my white privilege keeps me, even in poverty, better off than others. I am so very glad that the bad things that have happened to me in my world have never been as bad as living in the Congo or other places dealing with genocide, female genital mutilation, child soldiers, daily air bombings like Syria, night raids when your family is taken away and women and children raped, or even in the American South where a black person gets gunned down simply for the color of their skin or anywhere in the USA Native American women go missing at high rates and it seems no one gives a damn.

Across the world women are still stoned for having healing skills or when THEY are the victims of rape and it’s said THEY bring shame to their family because of it. No, wait. That still happens right here in the US. So, too, do child marriages, it’s lawful to rape your wife in most states, and the police state in the US is being granted more and more leeway and freedom every day – including the right to beat and rape prisoners. That’s right. In most states it is lawful to rape a prisoner. That is, we know rape is illegal; however there is no law against NOT raping a prisoner.

Why write about it all? Why me? Simply because I AM white. People of color experience atrocities at profoundly high rates. It’s sickeningly ridiculous. What do we do? We continuously keep telling them to “get over it.” “Rwanda is history, slavery is history, the Indian schools is history, it’s all history, blah blah blah…” but it’s not history to their living parents, grandparents, and for some of them – living it now. We are living in times where icky “isms” of the past are coming alive again at raging rates worldwide. When those “old times” are starting to happen all over again how do we tell them to “get over it?”

That purely is white privilege speaking when telling them to get over it. Do these things not happen to white people? Of course they do, but that’s not the point. We know they happen to people of color at proportionately much higher rates. That is the point. They bring up “people conquer other peoples, that’s what history is about. The conquered people assimilate and you get over it.” Tell that to Ireland and Scotland, who are still fighting to be free countries and people who are still learning their old ancient languages. The same goes for Native tribes all over North and South America, Africa, Asia, and well virtually everywhere you find Native Tribes. I don’t think any place ever completely assimilates. The old hangs on.

The thing is, the old, they don’t have a voice. They are our memories. What happens is, many don’t want to let those memories go; memories of place, culture, peoples, and time. Whether or not those memories are good ones or not don’t matter to those who are doing the remembering. Some are remembering bad times and want revenge or justice. Some are remembering their culture and language and want to share. It is the children who grow up hearing the memories who are caught. Caught between hearing what actually was, and what is embellished upon by the rememberers, the children can also grow up with scars from the past.

When any person is asked where they are from they usually say a place. How many people answer, “I came from my loving parents,” or “I came from adoptive parents who took me in because my birth parents were killed in horrible…” due to whatever holy war or government war or war for oil or against slavery, etc, happened. How many people answer that they come from, and then go on to describe their culture instead of either a person or a place?

In the United States we don’t really have one culture to define us, unlike most countries. We have regions of culture. Each town or city may even have different areas or spots of culture. Is that good or bad? I think it is very good, yet now there are many who think the opposite. As a child growing up in the 1970’s I remember learning that the US was a “melting pot” and we were supposed to think of that as a good thing. That was supposed to be the American “culture.” The “American Dream” was supposed to be that everyone was to look forward to each generation living a bit better than the last. Yet another aspect of American culture. However, what that symbolic idealistic culture was hiding was the fact that our dreams were hiding behind white faces on the TV telling us about all this melting pot. The actual melting pot wasn’t actually meant to be seen or heard.

Governments lie, people are treated like shit. We know this. Viet Nam happened, Kennedy was killed, Martin Luther King was Killed, The 60’s tried to rebel and help and we go some new laws and thought the isms would start to die. The 70’s got lax and we celebrated the love we thought the 60’s had won – OK I’ll give ’em credit for protests. We started to go back and forth between Republican and Democrat parties defining themselves in new and profoundly worse ways every presidential election. Everyone in the parties getting farther and farther apart, separating our country. Our political parties have pushed so far apart until they are unrecognizable today and our government doesn’t recognize our people or the rights fought for back in those days.

Atrocities have happened here in the US. Yes We do horrible things to each other every day in the name of our politics, religion, beliefs, etc. We have terrible murderers, mass shootings, rapists, hell we even have ass-hats who think it’s OK to run people over with their cars simply because they are protesting something. Our near-past is full of lynching people for being black or gay, going to your house or place of worship to shoot you because you aren’t the same faith, and priests and rich college boys going free for rape. Our daily newspapers are full of horrendous and unspeakably gory crimes, yet if they are done by white people they get a lesser sentence and if they are done by a person of color – or heaven forbid – a person fleeing through our southern border, they suddenly are taking over our electronic devices and our lives.

Put it all into perspective though, would you? White people, please. Do any of the daily horrible things that you read or hear about actually affect you personally most of the time? Is your brother, sister, son, daughter, etc being  lynched or shot or followed through a store due to the color of their skin? Is your house or car fire-bombed or have a brick thrown through a window because you are gay, black, or called a witch? Yes? Ah, but how often? Now, if you were a person of color, these things would be happening to you multiple times over.

Now Americans as a whole should put it into modern perspective, too. Have we had the number of terrorist bombings here that France or other countries have had? Have we had to live through anything like a Rwandan genocide? I’m talking to white people here, because yes, our Native American brothers and sisters sure as hell have. Yes, the Indian Schools were still functioning in this last century. That’s not history. That’s modern. How about the barbarous actions in Syria? I am begging white Americans to stop whining about the trifles in their first world lives. Yes, even poor white Americans. Especially poor white Americans who keep voting for the Republicans who keep them poor. (Oops, my bad. That’s another post.)

There surely, honestly can’t be any white poor American who thinks they are worse off than a poor black person in Africa? A person living in the Syrian war? Anyone living in a cartel-ridden country in South America? If they do, then shame on them. Even if you live in a shack without running water in the South in America you can still find water to drink MOST of the time and you DO have that shack. Shit, I’m being one harsh bitch, right? I’m not stupid. I KNOW there is real abject poverty here in the USA that could be done away with if the richest 3 families in the US didn’t earn more than the bottom 50% of Americans. However, I also know that those poor families are not being bombed every day. They don’t have militia or cartels coming to their homes any time of day taking their food, or even worse, taking their family members away or raping them and then taking them or just killing them for fun.

I am part of poor America. I live below the poverty line. I am grateful that I am not being bombed, yet. With 45 in office, it’s an iffy subject. I have friends who don’t have running cars and sometimes go without running water or functioning heat. I also went to college and have a degree and a professional license. However, I became disabled and living on Social Security is not a living wage. Medicare is not a functioning health care insurance for my needs. I scrimp and save and go to food shelves.

I am so glad I don’t live in a war-torn country or anywhere else where crimes against humanity happen on a daily basis. Oh, I have to stop and laugh. I forgot who our current leader is for a moment. Sorry. No. Really. I AM happy to live here. We have SO many freedoms. I will fight tooth and nail to keep what so many in our country are trying to take away right now from so many in our beloved melting pot. I know it is my white privilege that allows me to live so freely in the US without fear. Having been a foster parent to several children of color I’ve seen the looks from the white folks. I’ve watched the managers of grocery stores follow my teen foster son for no reason. I’ve dealt with the school leaders giving harsher discipline to mine than others. There are different types and levels of fear.

I thought I knew fear. I know rape. I’ve seen the desire of a man to need to make his fist connect with my flesh, yet I held his eyes with mine in the moment of the dare and won. He may have had my body, but not the rest of my flesh. He had his moment. I wouldn’t give him more. I was able to fight back. That was but a moment in time. No, I don’t trivialize rape.  There is so much pain happening to so many people at any given moment. There are too many of the people willing to “walk on” through their days and do nothing. My white privilege allows me to get therapy and keep walking.  Can you all look into your soul and like what you see looking back? Have you looked at your isms and shaken them enough to know that you have them? Have you faced them? Do all the white people who are whining about their 1st world problems realize they are fearing what they fear in themselves?

Right now I fear I’ve rambled all over the place in this post.