Republican, Democrat or Purple People Eater

I watch the bills that come across my senators’ and congressmen’s desks, and if I feel strongly about a bill, I might talk about it on Facebook and send an email to my politicians. But I admit I don’t actually send those emails very often. So when my regular email from www.congress.org came, listing the newest bills, I expected another list of outrageous stuff that either didn’t really matter to me or I’d seen in the news and trusted it would get knocked down. Today, though, one of the bills on the plate is H.R. 2587–the Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act. I remembered this as being a reaction to a recent ruling by the NLRB against Boeing for moving to a state that is much less unionized. So…anti-union, right? To be expected from Republicans, nothing new, right? I thought, until I read the actual text, that this would only affect a company looking to move its operations.

Wrong.

So very, very wrong.

This bill goes far beyond party lines. This bill is completely ANTI-AMERICAN WORKER.

Here’s the part that troubles me:

SEC. 2. AUTHORITY OF THE NLRB.

Section 10(c) of the National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 160) is amended by inserting before the period at the end the following: ‘: Provided further, That the Board shall have no power to order an employer (or seek an order against an employer) to restore or reinstate any work, product, production line, or equipment, to rescind any relocation, transfer, subcontracting, outsourcing, or other change regarding the location, entity, or persons who shall be engaged in production or other business operations, or to require any employer to make an initial or additional investment at a particular plant, facility, or location.’.

For those really interested in the research, I’ll paste some info about what the NLRB (National Labor Relations Board) does down below. Basically it’s the courtroom for business. If you choose to sue a company for wrongful termination, whistleblowing retaliation, pay disputes, or any other violation of federal labor law in the private sector you go before the NLRB to make your case. Removing their power to punish the businesses that commit the crimes is akin to putting a serial murderer to trial, convicting him, and setting him free because the judges don’t have the power to inflict punishment. In essence, this takes away the worker’s right to restitution.

Think Wal-Mart nation, only worse. Much, much worse.

What can you do? I’m going to make it super-easy because we’ve got to get as many people as possible to join in on this. Go to www.popvox.com and search H.R. 2587. Click on OPPOSE, and when it comes up with “Tell Congress why you oppose H.R. 2587″, click “Yes, I have a personal story to tell my Members of Congress.” Then cut and paste the below message or compose your own. When you go through the process and click “finish” your email will be automatically sent to your local senators and representatives. Then spread the word. This isn’t about Republican, Democrat or Purple People Eater. This is about the American private sector employee.

I oppose H.R. 2587: Protecting Jobs From Government Interference Act because it’s one thing to prevent the NLRB from relocating a business. It is another entirely to restrict the NLRB from reinstating employees who were terminated wrongly, forcing companies to pay restitution for their errors and ensuring a fair and competitive workforce. If H.R. 2587 were to pass, it would give companies free reign to do as they please. A company could be sued, but no real punishment could be issued. It would be like convicting a child rapist and releasing him because the law prevented punishment from being issued to the criminal. It’s unacceptable that the Republicans are trying to get this in under the public’s nose by saying it’s only about Boeing. This is an attempt to undermine the labor movement in such a way as to take us to pre-depression era work conditions and I for one am not going to sit idly by while our government screws the ENTIRE AMERICAN WORKFORCE. I’ll be eagerly awaiting your reply advising that you agree and will not vote for this bill which effectively takes away the worker’s voice.

Come on, folks. This is one of those “if not us then who?” moments. Just a few minutes of your time…

NLRB on Wikipedia (it’s not perfect, but what is?)

Gay Marriage in the Bible

This article says what I’ve been saying for years—NO WHERE IN THE BIBLE does either God or Jesus condemn homosexuality or even MENTION it for that matter. Where homosexual acts are mentioned, they are mentioned by MEN. Human men. Not only that, but they are on par with just about anything else that is considered “immoral”…it’s not like being gay means instant damnation, unless lying, wearing the wrong clothes, divorce, adultery, or not tithing also mean instant damnation. If the rules to get into Heaven are THAT spastic, I’m not real interested anyway. Why would I want to go be surrounded by souls who lived on Earth as though there were eternal sticks up their asses?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lee-jefferson/bible-gay-marriage_b_886102.html

No man is worth jail time…but…

Disclaimer: I’m smarter than this. No man is worth jail time. However…hats off as much to this lady as to Lorena Bobbitt.

http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpp/news/062911-Woman-Allegedly-Cuffed-and-Tortured-Boyfriend-for-Cheating

What’s the quickest way to lose respect in the workplace?

I was at McDonald’s today, waiting for my order, when I noticed at the end of the counter a sign-up sheet for employees. I’m not sure what the employees were to sign up for, as my eyes immediately found, in big 22-point bold print, the word “REQIUERED.” I no longer cared what the employees were required to do. When my food was brought to me, I pointed to the sign and told the employee the word was misspelled and that didn’t make management look very smart. I got a knowing smirk from the employee, silently telling me not only had he already noticed it, but he ALSO didn’t think much of the intelligence of management.

Once, while working in a sales call center, I saw a letter one of our upper level managers sent to a customer. It was an apology letter. The very first line started out, “We apologize for your incontinence, but…” Of course, it should have said “inconvenience,” but a lack of self-editing created a serious blunder. I discovered shortly thereafter that the letter had actually become a FORM LETTER! Managers were sending out the same letter to customers worldwide, apologizing for their incontinence. I was mortified. I told management, and the whole lot of the call center managers became defensive as though I was attacking them. The letter was changed, but never again did I feel comfortable being the whistleblower on management mistakes in that call center. I lost respect for my management and immediately sought new employment.

All too often I gently point out an error, only to be treated harshly or as an attacker. People get defensive. “What, I can’t make a typo now and then?” “Who says you’re any better than I am?” “Just because you’re smart doesn’t mean you know best.”

Everyone makes typos. When I do so, I expect my reader to catch me on it, or at least hope they do. I want to learn from my mistakes! I’m not better than anyone, and smart doesn’t always come from a formal education. I know this. Yet…I expect a certain level of self-respect in the correspondence I read. To me, putting your all into something means every aspect, including writing. Jotting a quick note to a friend, shorthand or typos are to be expected, especially when the writer isn’t a very good typist, or has trouble writing for whatever reason. However, communication with peers, customers, superiors, or subordinates in the professional world should always have acceptable grammar and spelling. Why? To put it bluntly, errors call the writer’s intelligence, character, self-respect, and respect for the reader into question.

• Poor grammar and spelling on a resume tells your possible future employer that not only are you possibly not well educated, you are either hasty or find imperfect work acceptable, and that you don’t care as much as you could about the impression you are presenting. It also calls into question the level of respect you have for a prospective employer.
• Poor grammar and spelling in an email to one coworker can be overlooked if the two correspondents are also close friends. Poor grammar and spelling to a coworker who is barely an acquaintance, or to a group of coworkers shows the readers you really don’t care about them or what they think of your writing or education. Later, when your coworker Jane gets promoted, she’s not likely to ever consider you for employment under her, because you didn’t even have enough respect for your own coworkers on a lateral level to proofread your emails before hitting send. What reason does she have to think you would do a better job with her as your supervisor than you did as her coworker? In the professional world, always remember…anyone you work with is a potential future boss.
• Poor grammar and spelling in an email to your superior is just plain disrespectful (and not very smart.) If I were a supervisor who received a poorly written email from a subordinate, I would think less of him/her. I would think less of that person because they obviously didn’t think very highly of me, or they would have at least done a little editing before hitting send. I would also address that employee and ensure they understood that, as an employer, I expect employees to at least attempt professionalism in correspondence. I would also ask to proofread any customer or vendor correspondence from that employee for the next month or so, to ensure errors weren’t going out regularly. (…and yes, I would know that I was being a little harsh about it, but I believe strongly that a business should strive to maintain excellence in ALL areas, and that accepting less than excellence means becoming a second-rate business.) I would, however, be gentle about it. No one likes to be attacked for their mistakes.
• Poor grammar and spelling in an email to your subordinates says you just don’t care about them; they are not worthy enough of your time for you to proofread. Even more so, one of the quickest ways to lose the respect of your subordinates is to make yourself seem less educated than they are. There is a tenuous balance in the employer/employee relationship. The employer should always strive to expect more of him/herself than is expected of the employees, especially in written correspondence.
• Poor grammar and spelling in correspondence with a customer makes the customer feel as if they are dealing with amateurs who don’t deserve the customer’s further business. As a paying customer, one should expect excellence in the company being dealt with. If, as in the example above, the company can’t even produce a well-written apology, then why in the world should that customer continue dealing with that business? There are plenty of other businesses who expect excellence from their employees in all aspects.

Whatever happened to simply putting forth your best effort for no other reason than to know you’ve done your best? If your best includes being in too much of a hurry to proofread, then don’t be surprised when your best simply isn’t good enough.

P.S. I probably made my fair share of grammatical errors in this entry, but I spell-checked it and re-read it at least 5 times. Since I don’t know all the grammar rules there are in the world, I probably broke a few, and if you see them, please by all means enlighten me. I’ll make an effort to avoid said mistakes in the future.

…ever learning…

mommaserene

Discussion starters

Let’s see, can I get people to comment? I want your opinions on my thoughts.

1. Immigrants work harder than most people I know. I don’t think they should be punished for traveling to look for work. If more of these poor unfortunate unemployed would go stand at the Home Depot at 5am and go pick fruit, there wouldn’t be so much reason for immigrants to come here because there wouldn’t be so many jobs. Be a part of the solution or shut up.

2. There should be no laws governing what someone does in their home unless it causes harm to a minor.

3. Yes, gay marriage and yes, polygamy should be legal. It’s none of the government’s business and PARTICULARLY the IRS’s business whether or not I’m married. We should all pay taxes as citizens, not based on marital status.

4. Prostitution should be legal and taxed. Can you imagine? Politicians might actually have to pay taxes!

5. Gambling should be legal and taxed heavily. If cigarettes get a “sin” tax, then so should all other vices. Though I don’t agree with a “sin” tax at all. None of government’s business.

6. Marijuana should be legal and taxed. If companies still want to prohibit it’s use, I guess that must be tolerated for the sake of liberty, but I don’t like it.

7. There should be no laws governing abortion, and if insurance companies want to cover it, so be it. If not, so be it. Recognize, I don’t like abortion, I don’t want abortion, I don’t agree with it as a solution, and I do feel that voluntary abortions for the sake of convenience are murder. However, that’s a decision among a woman, her doctor(s), and her personal God and IN NO WAY should the government be involved.

8. Pedophiles should get sent away for life. That kind of thing obviously can’t be fixed with current medical technology, and until that changes, they are a danger to society at large.

9. Health care is a right. Life is a right. If a citizen can’t get private insurance, there should be a public option. I want all my fellow citizens to be as healthy as possible. How can that not be a positive thing for the country?

10. Those who ordered waterboarding should be prosecuted as war criminals. Torture is torture. That’s like hitting a kid to teach them not to hit. Fuckin’ morons have run this country for too long. Geez, no wonder Bush’s daughters went nuts partying…he obviously has no idea how to parent. If he did, we wouldn’t have gone to Iraq and Afghanistan. We’d have used black ops to hunt down the bad guys and our boys would be at home providing security and assistance AT HOME. These wars have terrorized an entire region of the globe because a few fanatics grew up there. No wonder we’re hated worldwide as barbarians.

11. President Obama is doing a damn fine job working with what he has to work with. Life is not black and white, and you’ve gotta give a little to get a little. He’s getting there, just give him some time.

12. I am not a socialist or communist. In fact, I just listened to the Communist Manifesto and couldn’t disagree with it more. I am a libertarian.

13. Corporations should not be allowed to participate in government. They are quickly taking over this country and the world, and too many are all too happy to hand their lives and liberty over to corporations. Heaven forbid they pay taxes; they need that money to go to Wal-Mart!

14. Rich people should pay their fair share of taxes. They’re only hoarding money. They bitch about keeping the money they worked so hard for, but what do they do with it? Hoard it for their family, so THEY don’t have to work hard for the money. In what dimension is that right?

15. Don’t ask don’t tell is ridiculous. Quit telling me the soldiers won’t like it so it shouldn’t be done. From what I gather, the military imposes LOTS of stuff on soldiers that they aren’t happy about. They signed up to hand their lives to Uncle Sam, and if Uncle Sam says gays can serve, the soldiers will have to get the fuck over it.

16. There is nothing wrong with spanking when used as an actual form of discipline and not a lazy way to punish.

17. There should ALWAYS be a separation of church and state. Even if the founders WERE Christian, they did not write the Constitution that way. We must preserve the separation.

18. I’m all for gun rights and the 2nd amendment but Good Lord, why are there entire arsenals in the possession of average citizens? **eyes rolling** Idiots. Of COURSE people are nervous about you, you goddamn nutjob. Get out there and SPEND the money you’re using to build your petty little arsenal. The economy needs you more than America needs you and your damned trigger finger.

19. There should not be “hate crimes”. A crime is a crime, regardless of the intention. The hate can enter into sentencing, but there shouldn’t be extra laws based on who the victim is. All victims deserve to have justice. Period.

20. There should be a limit to how long a person can be on death row. Criminy! We pay far too much to keep people alive that we’re going to kill anyway.

21. Welfare has a place, but there should be stringent requirements: drug tests (if you can afford drugs, you can afford food), mandatory birth control administered by the Department of Health and Human Services, benefits should only last a couple years, there should be a NATIONAL database for who has received benefits and for how long, and recipients must PROVE they’re looking for work.

22. Sex education is a MUST. We must get back to the days of public service announcements about AIDS. Sex can KILL! Hullo, does no one remember this???

23. We must preserve FREEDOM on the internet. Maybe the government’s intervention isn’t the answer, but heaven forbid consumers spend a little time boycotting the internet to prevent corporate takeover of the PEOPLE’s only means of free communication.

Ok, let’s see how many people COMPLETELY disagree with me and WHY. I’m down for a debate, bring it on!

I’m Mental

Do you ever get to the end of your day and realize that every person you’ve communicated with that day has misunderstood your meanings? I have. I call those “bad communication days.”

Do you ever find yourself full of energy yet still depressed?

Keep these questions in mind and feel free to comment with any further you may have. I’m always down for researching answers.

So, having been in treatment for bipolar and ADHD for four years, I finally decided to go get thoroughly tested to see what my actual diagnosis was, as opposed to talking to a shrink for 10 minutes and him handing me prescriptions. I went in thinking Bipolar and ADHD and when my evaluation came back a month later I was told I’m not ADHD. Instead, I’m Bipolar I with “mixed episodes.” Basically that means I’m pretty depressed, and even when I have my manic upswings, rather than the typical euphoria that comes with mania, I just feel depressed with ENERGY. Most times that energy comes out in the form of being snappy, short with people, quick to anger and all other sorts of negative stuff, plus a major lack of impulse control.

It was determined that I am in the bottom 1% as far as self-image goes. That’s pretty sad, but pretty accurate. In fact, every single tiny detail of the very detailed evaluation is spot on. I recommend the testing for everyone in the world. I mean, you may not think anything’s wrong, and that’s fine, but if there’s a crack somewhere, don’t you want to fix it? Moreover, I did this testing knowing there’s no quick fix for whatever’s wrong with me, but hoping for recommendations on how to improve what’s already a not-bad life, not so that I could find more things wrong and panic.

I took my son for the same reasons, and because he has a hard time making friends. The diagnosis (not sharing here) came with pages of recommendations to make his life easier but still challenging and ways we can help him learn. He’s a good kid, a mostly normal kid, so we had already decided against any meds and that anything we learned we’d only use towards the good. Like changing the oil in your car…you do it to keep major problems from happening down the road. Well, we got this information so we can prevent major problems from his diagnosis and I couldn’t be happier that we did it.

Back to me, though…I’m mentally ill. Bipolar disorder is a true mental illness, far too close to schizophrenia for my comfort, in some cases linked to seizure disorders, and fairly easily treatable with meds and some therapy. A truly bipolar person will never be “normal” regardless of the medicines. There is no medicine to take away the highs and lows. What medicine can do is keep the highs and lows from being so extreme that they disrupt your life beyond repair. I still have problems, though. The ADHD symptoms are from the “mixed states” that I go through. These mood swings are not just over a few hours or days. I have been in a deep depression for many months, punctuated with short (a few weeks at a time) mixed manias. I think my last straight up manic episode was at the beginning of the year. Since then it’s been depression and energetic depression. I feel worthless, useless, lazy, ugly and a burden on my family.

From Wikipedia on bipolar disorder in general:

“In some cases, it can be a devastating long-lasting disorder. In others, it has also been associated with creativity, goal striving, and positive achievements. There is significant evidence to suggest that many people with creative talents have also suffered from some form of bipolar disorder.”

For the most part, my bipolar is probably the reason I got such great grades in school and have, up to the last year, been so successful in my job. Manias truly make you feel invincible and almost always more productive. But, here I am deep in depression, and my job has suffered for it…a LOT. So has my home life.

So. Oprah made sure we all know what DEPRESSION is, but do you REALLY know what a manic state is? Wikipedia once again has a pretty good explanation:

“Mania is the signature characteristic of bipolar disorder and, depending on its severity, is how the disorder is classified. Mania is generally characterized by a distinct period of an elevated, expansive, or irritable mood state. People commonly experience an increase in energy and a decreased need for sleep. A person’s speech may be pressured, with thoughts experienced as racing. Attention span is low, and a person in a manic state may be easily distracted. Judgment may become impaired, and sufferers may go on spending sprees or engage in behavior that is quite abnormal for them. They may indulge in substance abuse, particularly alcohol or other depressants, cocaine or other stimulants, or sleeping pills. Their behavior may become aggressive, intolerant, or intrusive. People may feel out of control or unstoppable. People may feel they have been “chosen” and are “on a special mission” or have other grandiose or delusional ideas. Sexual drive may increase. At more extreme phases of bipolar I, a person in a manic state can begin to experience psychosis, or a break with reality, where thinking is affected along with mood.[9] Many people in a manic state experience severe anxiety and are very irritable (to the point of rage), while others are euphoric and grandiose.”

Me? I get the irritability, insomnia, racing thoughts, low attention span, impaired judgment and impulse control, aggression, intolerance, out of control—yet somehow more in charge of certain aspects of life, raised libido, severe anxiety and rage. Oh, and something not mentioned on Wikipedia…I can’t handle repetitive sound. “Music” that constantly repeats the same riff or sound (Tool and Beck and NIN—love ‘em but can only listen to certain songs) is entirely unacceptable—it actually causes an almost PAIN, makes my whole body react. Rarely do I have the positive aspects, except the low attention span helps with multitasking. (On a side note, I think those with ADHD are the great untapped resource for multitasking. When pointed in the right direction, a person with ADHD can blow his/her cohorts out of the water with productivity. IJS)

And here’s the kicker—what I’ve been more often than not for the last year or so:

“In the context of bipolar disorder, a mixed state is a condition during which symptoms of mania and clinical depression occur simultaneously (for example, agitation, anxiety, aggressiveness or belligerence, confusion, fatigue, impulsiveness, insomnia, irritability, morbid and/or suicidal ideation, panic, paranoia, persecutory delusions, pressured speech, racing thoughts, restlessness, and rage).”

So why am I writing this blog? Because the stigma against mental illness is ridiculous. The mentally ill can be fully functioning members of society and you never had any idea. Most people find out I’m bipolar and are completely amazed. They would have never guessed. But the signs are there…It’s not that they wouldn’t have guessed it, but rather because they were uninformed as to the details of bipolar disorder and therefore don’t know what to look for. Bipolar can work toward success, just as ADHD can. Neither person can tolerate a boring job or class, but something that uses creativity and allows for multitasking—boy howdy, let me at it!!! For me, give me several tasks requiring detail and organization, and I’ll show you how it should have been done all along. The one thing I’m confident about in my life is being good under pressure. The doctor says that’s because I’m “hypervigilant” and because I work really hard at not using emotion to cloud judgments. I mean, I actually WORK really HARD to get past emotion, because my emotions are so overwhelming I tend to lose control when they take over. I came from an extremely dramatic family, so I flip the coin, which isn’t any better an idea. When people say shocking things, I often just stare at them blankly and they think I didn’t hear or didn’t care. However, I’m very carefully trying to regain my composure and come up with a proper response—neither of which is instant.

You probably know someone with bipolar disorder, another mood disorder, or some other mental illness. Maybe it’s you. If you think you may be bipolar, ADD, ADHD, or anything else like this, go to www.psychcentral.com. Take any applicable quizzes and print them for your records. Then use their “mood tracker” daily. I found doing it first thing in the morning kind of defeats the purpose. Hell, I’m depressed EVERY morning, always have been—I am an ANTI-morning person, LOL. So I try to wait until about halfway through the day to see if things are abnormal. I’ve been watching my moods for so long now that I can definitely tell and try to warn my husband before I get home.

It’s difficult to be in a relationship with bipolar disorder. Luckily I’m married to a good man who is interested in what is going on in my head. He understands that just like there are some limitations for a paraplegic, there are some limitations for me. Sometimes I need to be alone, but sometimes I’m horrified at the idea of being alone. Sometimes I want to party, others I just want to sleep. Sometimes I’m cranky as can be, but because I really don’t socialize at work, I don’t even know it until I get home and start getting looks from my husband and son. Then I find myself apologizing.
It’s an ongoing work in progress, always will be, forever. Well, I’d rather be a work in progress than a static person who knows what each day holds. I like life, for the most part, and really like variety. One thing bipolar disorder does is keep up the variety in life!

**Disclaimer: I’m well aware that there are a multitude of grammatical errors in this blog, and for that I apologize. It’s not an easy topic for me to write on, so I just wrote the words in my head regardless of grammar.**

Special Interests, Useless Bills, and Wasted Taxes

We’re so worried about special interests in Washington, at least, we the people are, but do we really know just how much of the peoples’ time and money is wasted on special interests?

House Resolution 1116 passed this week, “Supporting the Goals and Ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week.” Now, my mom has MS, so anything to do with MS has a direct impact on me.

Go read this bill; don’t worry, it’s very short.

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=hr111-1116

Ok, let’s recap what will be done now that this bill has passed:

v The House will support the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week

v Encourages the President to issue a proclamation in support of the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week;

v Encourages States, territories, possessions of the United States, and localities to support the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week by issuing proclamations designating Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week;

v Encourages media organizations to participate in Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week and help educate the public about multiple sclerosis;

v Commends the efforts of the States, territories, and possessions of the United Stateswho support the goals and ideals of Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week;

v Recognizes and reaffirms the Nation’s commitment to combating multiple sclerosis by promoting awareness about its causes and risks and by promoting new education programs, supporting research, and expanding access to medical treatment; and

v Recognizes all people in the United States living with multiple sclerosis, expresses gratitude to their family members and friends who are a source of love and encouragement to them, and salutes the health care professionals and medical researchers who provide assistance to those so afflicted and continue to work to find cures and improve treatments.

Did anyone else notice what I did? Let’s go over the verbs in that bill real quick: support, encouraging, issuing proclamations, help educate, commend, recognizes, reaffirms, expresses gratitude, salutes…

None of those words DO anything. It is a completely passive bill. It tells the media what to do, and nothing else. My question? Who on California Democratic Representative Barbara Lee’s staff wasted how much taxpayer money writing this bill? It is the House putting people with MS above the rest. I thought all men were created equal, but I guess that only applies to healthy people. I know a lot of people with MS who would be quite offended by this nonsense. We need to start paying attention. I follow the bills in Congress at www.govtrack.us, and these kinds of things come out every week. What a waste of time and money.

Here’s another one: H. Res. 1284: Supporting the goals and ideals of National Learn to Fly Day, and for other purposes. Want to know what it does?

v Resolved, That the House of Representatives—

o supports the goals and ideals of National Learn to Fly Day; and

o recognizes the contributions of flight instructors, flight schools, aviation groups, and industry in promoting and teaching the Nation’s next generation of pilots.

Amazing. That beauty came from Florida Democratic Representative Allen Boyd’s office. Really? My family has a huge love of flying, and I am surrounded by pilots and plane lovers, but that doesn’t make them more special than anyone else, and there is no reason Congress needs to be worrying about this special interest. They want to cut the budget? They need to stop wasting taxpayer time and money on this toilet paper.

Teen Sex

I wrote this a long time ago, but it still applies…

So a friend of mine asked that I write a blog on my views of teen sex. That’s kind of hard for me, since I waited until I was 20 to have sex, but here goes.

Syphilis is an epidemic among teenagers right now. If you have teenagers, that alone should scare the bejesus out of you. Not to mention AIDS and teen pregnancy.

A small majority of the teens of this day and age were raised by teen parents, and I don’t know about you, but I see a lack of self-respect and maturity coming from those kids.

I hate the idea of any child of mine getting pregnant or getting someone pregnant before college is finished. I just can’t imagine what I’d do. Or, heaven forbid they come home with an STD.

I know of parents that think if they provide the condoms for the kids, they will use them. These are the same teenagers that can’t use the hamper we provide for them, or put the toilet seat down, or wash the dishes they use. These are the same kids that DO NOT have to work for what they get, that have no self-respect or maturity, and their parents honestly think that in the heat of the moment these kids are going to remember CONDOMS? Abstinence is key. Now, I never claimed to be conservative on anything, but on this, I believe wholeheartedly in abstinence.

When I was 17, a movie came out that changed my teen life. It was called “Kids.” It was a mockumentary following teenage kids around talking about and having sex. It started with a 16-year-old boy convincing a 15-year-old girl to lose her virginity to him, and throughout the movie you realize this boy’s entire mission in life is to take the virginity of as many girls as possible, using whatever words and actions he has to to convince them. Shifts to a girl he slept with the year before, getting an AIDS test, which comes back positive. All the while, he’s after a 13-year-old girl to try to take her virginity. In the end, he sleeps with the 13-year-old while the infected girl is trying to find him to tell him about the test results. The infected girl passes out at a party trying to find him, and his best friend pulls down her pants and has sex with her. This movie scared the crap out of me, as a teenager, and hence I didn’t have sex until I thought I was old enough to care for a baby, should I get pregnant. I believe parents of all teenagers should at least watch this movie; it’s realistic and dramatic. Personally, I made my sister watch it at 15, and I’m so glad I did. The movie is NC-17 because it is so graphic and because of the subject matter, but boy howdy, it makes its point at a vivid level.

All I ever wanted in life was to be a mom, and I could have chased that dream as a teenager. But I had several friends who got pregnant in high school, who were unable to finish school for having to care for their children, and I swore I wouldn’t let that happen to me. Not to mention there were no “boys” in school that were worth the consequences. All they were after was one thing.

My husband once told me the only reason I had so many guy friends in high school is because I was a self-proclaimed virgin, therefore “uncharted territory.” I believe that to a certain extent, looking back on my teenage years, but I remember how they would talk to me about the girls that did put out, and there was no respect there. The boys had nothing good to say about a girl that gave into the pressure. They would pressure me and I would laugh in their face. Why? I would tell them it was because I KNEW who they had slept with and I wasn’t about to put myself in that line of fire. Some of those friends, more than 12 years later, are still some of my best friends. In fact, I married one.

Where are the girls that “put out” in high school now? I know of a few who worked their asses off to become fairly successful, but the majority of them are living at home, or in flophouses, or still have roommates, or in otherwise less than acceptable conditions at our age. By 30, you should at least be on the road to success, should have some ambition. If you work fast food, you should want to MANAGE fast food. Things like that.

I’m listening to Pink’s “Stupid Girl” right now, and boy howdy, does it say it all. “What happened to the dream of a girl president, she’s dancing in a video with 50 cent…I’m so glad that I’ll never fit in, that will never be me. Outcasts and girls with ambition, that’s what I want to see!” It just seems to me that those with ambition were the ones who saw the big picture. The big picture is that there will always be time for sex, believe me, but the time for school and ambition is a very short one. You only have one chance to do it right and then be done with it.

I’m going to start college–START college, mind you–in a few years when my youngest is in school, and I don’t look forward to having to work that hard. Being a mom is a full-time job, with or without a dad to share the burden. I also have to have a paying full-time job to pay the bills–barely (kids are friggin’ expensive!). Then I’ll be entering school and trying to figure out how to find the time to help the kids with their homework and get mine done at the same time. It will NOT be a fun time in my life, and oh, how I wish I’d have done college right, when I was straight out of high school. But I didn’t, and I can’t even imagine if I’d had children in high school. Where could I possibly be with my life. I know people who had their parents raise their kids so they could go out and be teenagers–how can they live with themselves? You only get ONE chance with children. And if you mess that up, you’re stuck with the results for life, and who knows how your children turn out? No thank you.

My advice to the young hipsters of today’s era: wait. I’m not saying you have to wait until you’re married, but think about it. Wait until you have your own health insurance and your parents don’t have to accompany you to the doctor’s office to get tested for STDs. Wait until you could effectively raise a child of your own–and girls, you must be prepared in this day and age to raise that child BY YOURSELF, since so many men just disappear with their girl says she’s pregnant. That alone is epidemic and a subject for another blog later on. Wait until you know he’s trustworthy and not just out for a piece of ass. Wait until you know he’s not going to cheat on you. Just wait! It will always be there for you, but it’s certainly not worth the dangers when you’re young.
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Since I wrote this, my kids are older, and so am I, and my views have changed just a tad. Yes, I am all for abstinence. However, abstinence does NOT equal ignorance. I believe now, and have always believed that schools need to educate children on sex, condoms, other forms of contraception, and the very real dangers of STDs. You know, my 7 year old’s elementary school educates the kids on germs and the swine flu and all that stuff…why stop at non-sexual germs? STDs can kill. The schools need to focus on the health crisis that is teen sex. I get really, really irritated when the only thing I hear about teen sex is about pregnancy. In my opinion, pregnancy is a positive thing, and the STDs are the negative thing.

Think, from a teenage girl’s perspective. Maybe she doesn’t feel she gets enough love or attention…but that baby she babysits adores her. Do you think commercials about NOT getting pregnant are going to stop her from having sex? Doubtful. Focus on KILLER DISEASES, though, and they may think twice.

Comments settings

Just FYI, I just set up my comments settings. Since I won’t be able to regularly log on, I set it with no moderation unless there are more than 2 links in the comment.

THIS MEANS ANYTHING GOES. I censor myself to an extent as a mature adult and I expect you to do the same.

It also means don’t get mad at me if someone else posts an offensive comment. OK, you can get mad at me if I’m the one that posts it.

Hey Howdy Y’all!

LOL, I love to say that; it makes me smile when my fellow Texans who try not to sound Texan look at me like, God, you hick! It’s just one of those fun things to do.

I don’t have a lot of time to blog, so I doubt there will be much on here at first, but eventually I’ll get a consistent internet connection at home and will become more prolific.

For now, though, you’re welcome to follow me on Twitter; surprisingly enough, I go by @mommaserene.

I’m twisted, but aren’t we all?

I’m Christian, but having some trouble understanding why we have to care what people other than God and Jesus ever said. If you go through and read only the words of God and Jesus, the message is simple, and so very Bill and Ted: Be excellent to each other. That’s it. I don’t see why someone else’s sex life is my business. Mine isn’t any of their business, is it? Christians tend take ourselves too seriously.

I believe that all living humans have the right to life. I believe that denying people healthcare is tantamount to murder, and therefore should be illegal. Everyone needs insurance. I believe the corporations run this country, Big Brother style. Other than that, though, I’m pretty much libertarian. I don’t think the monopoly the insurance industry has is constitutional. I don’t think the founding fathers ever thought that corporations would run the government. They are not people and should not be allowed to donate to campaigns…or that there should be a cap for any and every company’s donations.

Anyway, I’ve got to go for now. Follow me on Twitter for more information on me until I can get really started on this.